Do You Help Someone You Know is Lying?

Answer: Sometimes.

Scene 1: Church Parking Lot Downtown Fresno
Act 1: Grungy 30-something woman approaches me and says,
"I don't want money, but . . ." She went on to say that she, her husband, and her two children had just come to Fresno from Oakland, were staying in a motel, and needed food.

Lesson 1: Everyone who approaches you really wants money, no matter what they say.

Act 2: I suggested that she call Evangel Home, and since I work there, I would make sure she could get some food. She said she had already done that and been told that we only give canned food. Since she didn't have a can opener, this wouldn't work.

Lesson 2: No point to tell them you know they are lying.

Scene 2: My car
Act 3: I offer to take her to the Evangel Home where I will personally make her a food box. She says OK, and off we go. I do ask that she places her backpack in the back seat.

Lesson 3: Always be suspicious no matter how well intentioned you are.

Act 4: Conversation in the car reveals that she has stayed at Evangel Home in the past, and didn't like it because she said someone was rude to her. She tells me that her two children loved it there, and that they are doing very well. She also says that she has left them at her church (she doesn't know the name) and will get them later.

Lesson 4: Once the lies and cover ups begin, you alone cannot stop them.

Scene 3: Evangel Home Kitchen
Act 5: We arrive at the Evangel Home, I explain to the staff member on duty and the 2 residents helping prepare lunch that "Rayanne" needs some food. I give them a few details, "Rayanne" is now amazed because she knows she has told me she didn't like Evangel Home. She is aware I might be suspicious of her story, and we are helping her anyway? Thinking of her two children, we even give her some toys and clothes.

Lesson 5: Always remember those acts you are performing might not be for you or the person you are helping, but for someone else watching from the sidelines or involved in some other way--someone God is moving into place. The message sent to the 2 residents helping her is multi-facted and strong. They were thankful not to be in her position, and amused that they were working so diligently to help someone they knew was not telling the truth but beginning to question herself.

Scene 4: Motel
Act 6: I drive "Rayanne" to the motel where she is staying because we have given her way too much stuff to carry -- even a can opener for that canned food we put in the box. Her "husband" is there in the parking lot to help (she used our phone to call him), and I offer to carry one of the bags to the door. They allow me to actually go into the room where I observe there is one unmade bed and not one bit of evidence that children are there. Thank goodness, actually.

Lesson 6: Pick up the pieces and pray. Maybe, just maybe, "Rayanne" saw something in all of this that will convict her she is on the wrong path and she will truly want to become a Christ Follower. However, in the mean time, those two GARDEN residents have taken one more step in the right direction.