Volunteer story - Biz Sorenson (pictured left), Bethany House, Edinburgh
As spring is now upon us I’ve found Scotland to be particularly beautiful. With green grass, daffodils singing forth silent songs of hope as the weather grows warmer and the streets are alive with smiling faces once again. Easter too, is approaching where we will soon find ourselves celebrating the ultimate symbol of hope—Jesus Christ’s resurrection. The joy I find in creation has been matched with the joy I have found in my work at Bethany House this month.
Michael was one of the first residents I got to know - his sense of humour, engaging personality, and take-charge attitude made him easy to like. Michael had no drug or alcohol issues, but after a bombardment of life’s hardships one after the other, he found himself wifeless, jobless, money-less, and homeless within a short period of time. The average resident successfully moves on after a 6month stay at Bethany House. This is typically how long it takes to get settled, work through personal issues, and eventually receive housing from the Edinburgh Council through the bidding process, however Michael’s case was different.
It can be trying both mentally and spiritually here as a resident. Your only privacy is your small bedroom, and even then it is not very private. You must follow weekly cleaning schedules, follow curfew, eat at scheduled times, and live with a variety of different people with a variety of different issues moving in and out of your flat on a regular basis. I have seen Michael struggle, doubt, become angry, frustrated, anxious, and even hopeless at times. Yet, Michael never missed a single service charge payment, never received a warning, formed a family-like atmosphere in his flat, and created meaningful relationships with almost the entire staff at Bethany House. When the phone call from the Housing Department arrived offering Michael a flat after 14 months of life at Bethany House my eyes welled up with tears when he told me the good news at the dinner table. I thought, “If anyone deserves a new place to live—it’s Michael.”
In his time here he unknowingly taught me lessons. Through his honest character and determined spirit Michael taught me more about perseverance, patience, and hope than I could ever put into words. As I came to know Michael as an individual, I soon realized that from that relationship I received so much more than I ever gave. I made him cups of tea, talked about God and why I thought Jesus was someone to put your hope in, and listened when life for Michael was hard and listening was all I could do.
Yet these small acts of service were nothing compared to the ways I received. In whatever small ways I gave to Michael I was repaid with an abundance of life lessons, wisdom, deep-down laughter, a spirit of hope, and the story of a life that has taught me how to better live my own.
In his times of doubt, questioning whether or not it was worth the wait, I remember sharing with Michael this piece of scripture from the book of James,
“Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.”
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