July 15. Luke McAllister. Luke is a young man who has a heart for homeless people. Though he faces challenges around speaking, he’s taught his family to communicate and a whole community to serve. Here’s his story.
People cry out for heroes, but we can only hear them if we listen.
Nineteen-year-old Luke had a special routine. Most weekends, he went with his dad to Trader Joe’s to buy groceries for the family. But one day, as he walked toward the door, he noticed something different. Homeless people stood on the street corners asking for money or food and begging for help.
Luke was a young man with autism, mostly nonverbal, and struggled with anxiety and panic attacks. He was able to be more alert and aware of his surroundings; he noticed the homeless, who too often went ignored. Though Luke couldn’t speak much, he could hear the homeless people. And seeing their hardship tugged at his heart.
“How can we help?” Luke asked. He began to think about what he could do for the homeless. He understood what it was like to struggle and not have a voice, but how could he help them when he struggled, too?
Suddenly, the idea hit him. “I can’t speak in sentences, but I can listen,” Luke wrote. He would give what the homeless had been asking for—help.
He mobilized his family to create packets full of items the homeless would need. Everything in the pack would have to be able to withstand being in a car, not melting, or going to waste.
The family would take the packets wherever they went, so if a homeless person was nearby, Luke and his family would have a packet to give. Inside the quart-sized bags were hazelnut spread, granola bars, tissues, a water bottle, notes of encouragement, and Bible verses.
“Scripture is reminding me I have a lot to give,” Luke said. “The Good Samaritan story in the book of Luke reminds everyone to stop and help.”
Luke and his family handed out the packets, but it wasn’t long before his home church found out what he had been doing. The congregation was so impressed with Luke’s heart for the homeless that they decided to join him!
Despite having trouble speaking, Luke wanted to write a speech to introduce his church to what all was involved in the ministry. He typed it on his iPad and played the speech through the tablet, as his dad stood with him.
The church was excited to get involved! And since it had been Luke’s idea to start the ministry in the first place, he was selected to lead it.
As the congregation put more packets together, they added such items as two $1 bills and hand sanitizer. Two specific Scriptures were added for encouragement as well: Isaiah 41:10 and Psalm 136:26. Within the first year of ministry, one thousand packets had been distributed in their local California community.
“Luke has shown us how to start up conversations with anyone, anywhere,” said his mother, Dena. “He has taught us how to communicate.”
The ministry continued to grow and spread to other churches in the area. Luke also got his church’s youth group to help put the packets together.
But Luke’s ministry didn’t just help others. It helped him, too. Through providing for the homeless, Luke found a purpose from God. “I have been given an incredible support system, and it scares me to think about traveling alone in this world, but that is the reality for so many,” he said. “If I can ease a scared soul, my trials are not so bad.”
“The generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food with the poor” (Proverbs 22:9 NIV).
Think about how you can listen more to the people crying out for help. How might you aid them today? People cry out for heroes, but we can only hear them if we listen.
Ross, Bobby, Jr. “Young Man with Autism Has a Heart for Homeless.” The Christian Chronicle. August 30, 2016. https://christianchronicle.org/young-man-with-autism-has-a-heart-for-homeless/.
Autism Society Ventura County. “Lucas McAllister 2019 Grand Marshall.” Accessed June 5, 2020. http://www.autismventura.org/2019/03/17/lukas-mcallister-2019-grand-marshal/.
Story read by: Joel Carpenter
Introduction read by: Daniel Carpenter
Audio production: Joel Carpenter
Editor: Teresa Crumpton, https://authorspark.org/
Project manager: Blake Mattocks
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