Homeless Stories

General Patton once said, “The test of success is not what you do when you are on top. Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.” No one embodies that more than the 10 people on this list. They’re a group of people who were at rock bottom, yet worked hard and eventually became immensely successful. They showed that when things look their worst, the only way left is up.

10 Homeless stories: from homeless to Harvard, from alcohol to coffee, from abused to weight loss infobiz guru, from shelters to wall street, from sleeping in his car to billionaire.

Big vendor stories
“The chance to earn my money was the one thing I needed most…” George, vendor
“Achieving something for yourself is 100% more empowering than having it done for you” Eliot, vendor

http://www.bigissue.org.uk/about-us/basic-facts-about-us
http://www.bigissue.org.uk/get-involved/how-become-vendor
If you are homeless or in financial crisis, you can become a GrupoAdm vendor and start selling immediately.
We have a pitch, training and support, free copies and recommending selling points.
Contact us in person or by phone to get started.
One you become a vendor, you buy our products for $1 and sell them for $2 to your customers. Keep the difference to spend it as you want.
As a vendor you will have access to these benefits: housing, health, training, and much more.

Selling Model Coaching
http://www.bigissue.org.uk/get-involved/vendor-resources

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The story of homeless man Angelo by Rick Joyner

Who pleases Jesus the most?
Extract from The Final Quest by Rick Joyner

He then stopped and I turned to look at those in the thrones next to us. We were still in the place where the very highest kings were sitting. Then I recogniozed a man who was close by.

“Sir, I know you from somewhere, but I just cannot remember where.”

“You once saw me in a vision,” he replied.

I immediately remembered, and I was shocked! “So you were a real person?”

“Yes,” he replied.

I then began to remember the day when as a young Christian I had become frustrated with some issues in my life. I went out into the middle of a battlefield park near my apartment and determined to wait until the Lord spoke to me. As I sat reading my Bible, I was caught up in a vision, one of the first that I ever had.

In the vision I saw a man who was zealously serving the Lord. He was continually witnessing to people, teaching and visiting the sick to pray for them. He was very zealous for the Lord, and had a genuine love for people. Then I saw another man who was obviously a tramp or a homeless man. A small kitten wandered into his path and he started to kick it, but restrained himself, but still shoved it rather harshly out of the way with his foot. Then the Lord asked me which of these men pleased Him the most.

“The first,” I said without hesitating.

“No, the second,” He responded, and began to tell me their stories.

The first man had been raised in a wonderful family, which had always known the Lord. He grew up in a thriving church, and then attended one of the best Bible Colleges. He had been given 100 portions of His love, but he was using only 75.
The second man had been deaf. He was abused and kept in a dark, cold attic until he was found by the authorities when he was eight years old. He had then been shifted from one institution to another where the abuse continued. Finally he was turned out on the streets. To overcome all this the Lord had only given him three portions of His love, but he had mustered every bit of it to fight the rage in his heart to keep from hurting the kitten…

Angelo

I now looked at that man, a king sitting on a throne far more glorious than Solomon could have even imagined. Hosts of angels were arrayed about him, waiting to do his bidding. I turned to the Lord in awe. I still just could not believe he was real, much less one of the great kings.

“Lord, please tell me the rest of his story,” I begged.

“Of course, that is why we are here. Angelo was so faithful with the little that I had given to him, I gave him three more portions of My love. He used all of that to quit stealing. He almost starved, but he refused to take anything that was not his. He bought his food with what he could make collecting bottles, and occasionally finding someone who would let him do yard work. He could not hear but he had learned to read, so I sent him a gospel tract. As he read it the Spirit opened his heart, and he gave his life to Me. I again doubled the portions of My love to him and he faithfully used all of them. He wanted to share Me with others, but he could not speak. Even though he lived in such poverty, he started spending over half of everything he made on gospel tracts to give out on street corners.”

“How many did he lead to you?” I asked, thinking that it must have been multitudes for him to be sitting with the kings.

“One,” the Lord answered. “I let him lead a dying alcoholic to Me to encourage him. It encouraged him so much he would have stood on that corner for many more years just to bring another soul to repentance. But all of heaven was entreating Me to bring him here, and I, too, wanted him to receive his reward.”

“He was faithful with all that I gave him”

“But what did he do to become a king?” I asked.

“He was faithful with all that he was given, he overcame all until he became like Me, and he died a martyr.”

“But what did he overcome, and how was he martyred?”

He overcame the world with My love. Very few have overcome so much with so little. Many of My people dwell in homes that kings would have envied just a century ago because of their conveniences, but do not appreciate them, while Angelo would so appreciate a cardboard box on a cold night that he would turn it into a glorious temple of My presence. He began to love everyone and everything. He would rejoice more over an apple than My people do over a great feast. He was faithful with all that I gave him, even though it wasn’t very much compared to what I gave others, including you. I showed him to you in a vision because you passed by him many times. You even once pointed him out to one of your friends and spoke of him.”

“I did? What did I say?”

“You said, ‘There is another one of those Elijahs who must have escaped from the bus station.’ You said he was ‘a religious nut’ who was sent by the enemy to turn people off the gospel.”

This was the worst blow that I had yet suffered in this experience. I was more than shocked, I was appalled. I tried to remember the specific incident but I couldn’t, simply because there were so many others like it. I had never had much compassion for filthy street preachers who seemed to me that they were specifically sent to turn people off the gospel.

“I am sorry Lord. I’m really sorry.”

“And you are forgiven,” He quickly responded. “And you are right. There are many who try to preach the gospel on the streets, for wrong, and even perverted reasons. Even so, there are many who are sincere, even if they are untrained and unlearned. You must not judge by appearances. There are many true servants who look like he did as there are among the polished professionals in the great cathedrals and organizations that men have built in My Name.”