Wayside Chapel farewell for Graham Long

Our family has known Graham Long and his wife Robyn for a long time. I have taken the liberty to post this message from the Wayside Chapel which is a wonderful tribute. John Owen is the young man replacing Graham as the new CEO.

"Dear Inner Circle,

Have you ever emerged from an event or a moment that left you feeling somehow, changed; knowing you had just been elevated out of time, and been touched by the awesome? Surely last Sunday afternoon was such a moment. Close to 600 of you, our beloved Inner Circle, came from all over Australia, to attend our Celebration Sunday event to thank Graham for his contribution. At the same time we recognised that we have found ourselves on a path to a destiny where, “Love Over Hate” is not a slogan but lived, real, and embodied in us all. At the event we were all surprised and delighted that in the front row, sat Malcolm and Lucy Turnbull. What a nightmare of a week they had just experienced, and who of us in that spot would have wanted to face a large public audience? To have them fly up from Canberra on Sunday especially to attend our event was truly remarkable. It spoke volumes of the Turnbull’s love of Wayside, Graham and our continued mission. When Malcolm addressed the audience, he didn’t just speak, but, opened his heart to us – what a moment!

For over two years, Graham and our Board have carefully planned generational change in this succession. Finding a new leader is a tough assignment but no plan would have worked unless the current leader had the extraordinary ability to step out of a role in which he was currently thriving. For years, Graham has been teaching that whenever we find ourselves thriving in an occupation, or in a relationship, at our happiest, we find ourselves to be “necessary, significant but not central”. It’s been a joy to hear him teach this, but also an inspiration to see him live it out in this succession process.
 
This week, I've been flooded with story after story of lives slowly turning around through participation in our art, gardening, karaoke and evening bingo. We know good things are going to happen when the driving question changes from “What can I get?” to “What can I give?” We are seeing more and more people from our community moving into roles that serve others, everywhere I look I see sparks of life shining brightly. A few months ago I was deeply concerned for a young woman who had gone missing. This morning she tapped me on the shoulder, smiling but nervous. She has just gotten out of rehab and trying to do all she can to avoid bad company, “Good wins in the end right?”, she asked me. I replied with a smile "That’s our hope and we’ve staked our lives on it”. 
Thanks for being part of this inner circle,

Jon
Jon Owen
CEO & Pastor
Wayside Chapel

PS. We premiered two very special videos at Celebration Sunday, of members of the Inner Circle sharing their own personal messages of thanks to Graham. If you weren’t able to make the event, you can watch Part 1  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSD9NKzjDN0&t=    and Part 2   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knret1MN7eg&t= here.

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

As a young man, I liked to think I was pretty bright. In my mid-twenties my head was awash with Freud, Ellis, Berne and the like. I wanted to serve people well but in the process I ran a solo commentary on how the world worked. I look back in horror and embarrassment at my pretentious twenty-something self. Knowledge comes through books but wisdom comes through pain.

In the little town of Waikerie, South Australia, I ran a visiting service for a government department whose primary responsibility was child protection. The office I used had no receptionist and no telephone; just a sign on the door to say that I’d be there on Fridays. No one had thought of mobile phones in those days. I started each visit with a full waiting room and I’d work until everyone had gone. They were often long days with no way for me to make enquiries for people or ask for help when my way got difficult.

One day a woman walked in with her daughter who I imagine might have been four or five years old. I will never lose the image of the little girl’s face. Her facial expression was akin to a snarling dog and yet she said nothing. I’m not sure she could talk. She seemed to be hiding a hand and so I gently pulled her arm up so that I could see her hand. Her little fingers were badly burned and blistered. The pattern of the burns suggested to me immediately that the burns were caused by a hotplate. The sore hand had received no medical treatment and had swollen to become as large as my hand. “How did this happen?” I asked the mother. She replied, “She tells lies”. I felt sick. Nothing I had ever learned was any good to me. I had no phone and no one to ask for advice. Under all my fundamentalist Christian formation was a question that gnawed at me for years. Where was God when that little kid’s hand was being held on the hotplate?

A couple of months later, I helped another mother with seven kids run away from the domestic violence of her drunken husband. The family lived on a part of the Murray River that was miles away from anyone or anything. On the day of escape, two of the children were unexpectedly with their father and so we escaped with Mum and five kids. When the husband returned, he was so incensed that his wife would leave him that he took his five-year-old daughter, put her in a weighted bag and lowed her into the river. The child died. My soul numbed for years until I could bare to ask myself where God might have been when that little girl was being lowered into the river.

It took me years to be able to ask my question let alone move toward an answer. Today, I know where God was when the little girl was mercilessly lowed into the Murray River. God was, “in the bag”.

Easter makes no sense except to reveal that there is no God-forsaken place where God isn’t. There is no person who is too far gone. The is no hole you can fall into where there is not goodness and hope at the bottom.

That is my Easter message for this year. When you are bewildered by Christians who observe this season and seem to honour what looks like an act of unspeakable brutality, understand that they know; God is in the bag.

Thank you for putting up with my odd religious message and thank you for being part of this inner circle,

Graham


Rev Graham Long AM
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/




 

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

I’ve never done this before but below is a note I sent to all staff this week. Several people suggested that this note would be a helpful insight for you, our inner circle. I hope this note provides insight into Wayside and how we deal with extraordinary pressure but also maybe this could be helpful for any family or any organisation that likewise might be living through hard times.

So here it is… and…

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,

Graham
...

To the whole Wayside team,

Our way has been torrid lately. I was whinging a bit about my workload to Mon the other day and she told me about how someone had just projectile vomited on her. It put my whinge into perspective.

You’ll wonder if our way could get any more difficult after losing two people last week but I bring you more bad news today. Tammy died this morning. Some of you will know that Tammy, being transgender, was brutally bashed on two occasions before her death. I’m told her death is not directly the result of the bashings but what a dreadful week was the last week of her life. I know I’ve just delivered a deep wound to the hearts of many of you whose hearts were already heavy.

This week, more than ever, we need to show kindness to one another. We need to allow more room for wobbles than we might normally allow. Many of us are grieving. There is a massive blessing for us who do this work, and if we’re doing it right, there is a massive heartache too. Especially to Una’s team in the Community Services Centre but also to Mon’s team in the Aboriginal Project and all those with whom I’ve shared tears recently, thank you for your lack of professional distance and thank you for your abundance of professional love. You inspire us and your tears set off a chain reaction of love in the rest of us. You each build my faith more than if Jesus were to suddenly appear before me. Actually, in watching you work, embracing the tough stuff, engaging in fun and pain, in celebrating small wins and in shedding tears for our losses, Jesus does suddenly appear for me and I am reborn and filled with awe.

Be on the alert for one another. Remember that multiple tragedies can have a cumulative effect. I urge each manager to do something with your team that gives room to focus on that which is fun and that which is beautiful. The fun and the beauty are always with us so we don’t have to invent it, just make room for it.

Remember too that it was never our task to fix anyone. Our task is to be alongside and when such a meeting takes place, people will fix themselves. It is right that we should feel pain. It is not however the pain of failure. The sessions we have when tears flow are our finest hour. Many want to judge Sallie, Tammy, Paul and the many others I could name, but when many choose to judge, we do not. We knew these people and we loved them. For some, the only tears shed for their sake came from our Chapel and your offices. That makes Wayside a special place on this earth.

What shall we do? Are there better days ahead? Yes, yes, yes. Amazing days are just ahead. What shall we do? I suggest every one of us hug Una and thank her for the job she does for the world and for the rest of us. I suggest we hug Mon and thank her for the job she does for the world and for the rest of us. I suggest we find everyone on both these teams and give them a hug and thank them for all they do to make this world a better place. We should thank them for being affected and vulnerable and responsive. I’m not forgetting Day to Day Living nor our Youth team nor our Bondi team. All of our programs is where the human rubber meets the road and this is a good moment for all of us to express our thanks to every person in every one of our programs.

Wayside isn’t a monoculture that we project onto the world. We are not an explosive device that is aimed at the world. We are a group who knows that ‘meeting’ rather than ‘fixing’ is the way to a better world. It means we actually risk a fair bit. We are prepared to lose ourselves to some extent in order to be part of a community with no ‘us and them’.

I wouldn’t work anywhere else in the world for any amount of money. Thank you and look after each other this week.

Graham


Rev Graham Long AM
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

From the Wayside Chapel by Rev Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

“Torrid” is one way of explaining life here just lately. We had a fellow attempt to take his own life with a rope although he fell into the capable and compassionate hands of Una before he came close to doing himself damage. Another dear lady, under the influence of ICE, suddenly produced a knife and threatened two of our staff. The saddest part of this situation was that she was threatening the person who loves her in this world the most. I’m thankful for highly trained and disciplined staff members who handled this according to long-practiced policy. The person was soon enough contained behind a locked door. Police responded quickly and soon enough the lady was in custody and on her way to psychiatric help. To top off a busy few days, on Sunday while our little church was on, a lady at our front door suddenly produced a knife and cut her own arm open causing a dramatic, spurting bleed. If that was me, I would have fainted, but this lady ran, fast. Our staff who were concerned that excessive blood loss could be fatal, also ran, fast. The outcome was a quick resolution where medical care and psychiatric care were put in place. Fabulous work on the part of all our people but you’ll understand that while they look pretty relaxed, they are on their toes all the time.

Quite often, members of our inner circle write back to me with stories that resonate with something I’ve written. I have to share this one with you (with permission) because it made me laugh out loud.

Dear Graham,
I always love reading your "Inner Circle" letters. When I read your comments on rules in the latest one, "wisdom is a tricky business", I thought you might enjoy this little story. I went to mass yesterday for Ash Wednesday and because it's a day on which Catholics come out of the woodwork to go to church, the church itself filled up quickly and the overflow was directed to a hall underneath. We were sitting on chairs waiting for the priest when a nicely dressed man standing towards the back (a church warden apparently?) said in a booming voice, "Please turn your phones off. It's rude to have them on." ...so far so good... "And if you don't like our rules, you can f*** off." Well, that's telling it like it is! (A few more interjections made it clear he probably had some kind of mental health issue. To state the obvious, one hopes that those outraged by the breaking of rules about appropriate language in a church could look past that.)
Best wishes

Do you want to be part of Wayside history? Over the past few months we’ve been working with renowned photographer, Gary Heery, and creative director, Andrew Henderson, on a follow up book to Stories from the Wayside. Our last two shoot days for the book will be next week so it is your last chance to be included in what will be a stunning book, celebrating the sometimes raw, sometimes confronting but always awesome and beautiful community. We extend to you, our inner circle readers, neighbours, volunteers, supporters and visitors, a warm invitation. Final shoot days are Wednesday 24 February from 11am to 2pm at Wayside, 29 Hughes St, Potts Point and Saturday, 27 February from 10am to 3pm at the Kings Cross Markets, El Alamein Fountain. We’d just love to include you what will be an important snap shot of our history.

We’re on the hunt for a Direct Marketing Manager to develop and drive direct marketing programs across multiple channels. Applications close this Friday so if you or someone you know is interested, find out more information here.

Walking in the front door this morning a lovely, gentle Aboriginal man stepped over to me to shake my hand. A rather lovely woman that we only see once every few months also walked over and gave me a hug. A group of four men interrupted their conversation long enough to each shake my hand. As I passed them and was near the door, one of them yelled, “So are you busy today, Rev?” “Well,” I responded, “that is the impression I’m trying to give”. One of them came back with, “You mean ‘that’s the illusion you want to create’”. I walked through the door with all four of them doubled over with laughter.

We shed more tears here than in your average community. Often tears of laughter and sometimes they express unspeakable sadness. It’s what we do. We stand with those who are discarded or irrelevant. We stand with those who just couldn’t cope in this high tech, low human world, in order that no one will be alone. This is not an act of charity on our part but rather is an acknowledgement that our deepest need is to belong to one another. We not only stand with the ‘down and outs’ but we stand with the ‘up and outs’ for every act of racism, every act of snobbery, every act of blindness gives the illusion of 'them and us' but the deepest, truest, highest thing we know is that there is just 'us' and when one is hurt or devalued, all are hurt and devalued.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,

Graham


Rev Graham Long AM
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

Walking in our front door and heading in for choir practice, a young woman struck up a conversation with a homeless person. It was an interesting, easy flowing exchange that ended when the man said, “I’m not really homeless, I’m just outdoorsy”.

At the door this morning a young fellow stopped me to announce that he had a new girlfriend. “I’m happy for you” I said. He told me that his secret was that he’d told the young woman that he was me! He said she was chuffed to be keeping company with Rev Graham Long, Pastor and CEO of The Wayside Chapel. “Gosh” I said, “So you’re not planning for this to be a long term relationship then?” This poor young bloke is very unwell and didn’t understand how I could foresee a problem. “Well” I said, “She might find out you’re lying to her and I doubt that she’ll take it well, or, she might meet me and see that you’re impersonating a poor old burnt-out has been.” I went on to ask the fellow why he wasn’t happy or content to be himself and claim to be only himself when meeting a young woman. Unfortunately the man is unwell and he slipped into gobbledygook.

Last night the building was buzzing with a large AA group meeting, hand massage and nails going on with the Twilight Team and the Honeybees choir filling the building with their beautiful sounds. The special thing about last night for me is that my dear daughter is a Twilight volunteer and she was doing some of the hand massaging and nail painting. I’m so proud of her I could burst. When I walked out of the building the Honeybees were singing with full blown angelic power, “Hallelujah”. Perfect!

I’m staying light this week to balance the heaviness and often intemperate commentary that’s everywhere in the air today. My word to the sad is that there are times when the only gift possible for humanity is to carry a heavy heart. Your hope for a dignified and fair world has been offended. In times of such grief its common to strike out with angry words and quick judgements. We need to not shield ourselves from the full sadness that comes from the haunting thought of bullets ripping through the flesh of those executed yesterday but we also need to know that our grief is just that, grief. It is not the time for us to find new ways of offending Indonesia. Let the grief blow us where it will but let the healing begin soon. Indonesia’s position on the death penalty will not move while we are waving our fingers and beating our chests. Both countries are sickened by the work of drug pushers and both countries could work together to form policies and practices that are humane and constructive. Australia is not superior; we’re not even more humane. If there was a referendum calling for the death penalty for peadophiles in this country, I promise you it would be successful. There is a dark side in both our countries and it requires people of good will in both countries to look for the best in the other and work for the best of both.

A lovely man is sitting in our cafe just now who said to me, “There’s a lovely freedom of speech vibe down here. As long as everyone believes the same thing”.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,

Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com
    
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     This email was sent to geoff.g.thompson@gmail.com by graham@thewaysidechapel.com   
     http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/   

    

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

The good people of Bombala hosted me for their Australia Day celebrations. Sydney’s Kings Cross to the little town of Bombala is quite a cultural contrast. I began my speech by saying, “I walked down your main street last night and I didn’t see a single strip club or massage parlour. What kind of town is this?” I met so many hard working, honest people who mostly reminded me of an Australia that has largely disappeared. The primary activity of the day was shearing sheep. They stopped for a brief speech from me and also from the local Mayor and then they returned to shearing. The comedy act of the day was when they organised for me to shear a sheep. I didn’t want to hurt the poor animal that they put at my feet and so the job I made of shearing was just laughable. It’s an activity that is not kind on your back even to shear one sheep. How these folks are able to shear 200 and even 300 sheep a day is simply beyond my understanding. What an honour to speak with the locals and hear their concerns; to hear about the price of wool; the price of lambs; their vulnerability to weather; their understanding of the role of politicians; their fear about the threat of drugs to their young people. There were some clearly well-heeled people at the gathering and there were some young people whose fitness and strength left me in awe. There were many people who looked like they’d lived out in the weather for 40 years or who hadn’t removed their hats in that time. The main street literally had hundreds of 4x4 trucks and utilities and only one solitary small sedan. Even my car was something of a cultural shock to the street. I’m grateful to have met so many colourful characters and to have learned that should Wayside suddenly come to an end, shearing is not a way that I might make an alternate living.

Chatting in the cafe yesterday, a homeless man insisted on buying me lunch. I tried to talk him into allowing me to buy lunch for him instead. He said, “Think of all the times you’ve helped me in the past month.” “You’re right,” I said, “I’ll have spaghetti and a can of drink.” There are many people in this world who have so little but give so much. One of this city's most notorious criminals wrote to me from prison this week. He earns $20 per week in prison. If I told you the crime he committed, you probably would read no further. He sent me $200 and asked me to give it to someone in need. What an astonishing act of generosity! You can’t hate a whole person. The only way you can hate someone is to take a picture and call it the whole movie.

Sometimes our way is heavy. I’ve done two funerals last week and have three booked for next week. You should put a Wayside funeral on your bucket list. They are often sad, hilarious, deeply moving and inspiring all at once. Most of our eulogies come from voices that are never heard. Almost always, someone will stand and say, “I never met this person but if I had…” Sometimes there is the moving affirmation that, “This person was a bastard but he was my mate and I loved him.” Every now and then my mind plays the hundreds of funerals I’ve done here in fast forward. They are among my most precious memories as I’ve witnessed words of love with no polish and poor expression but almost extracted directly from the heart, bypassing the brain, lungs, throat and mouth. There is often a 'death weariness' to be clearly seen. Many people begin their words with, “How many times can we do this?”

Our team gets better and better at what they do. The other day I went into the cafe to see a table with five men all sitting around our Lisa, learning to sew. I saw our Julian and Katherine in our Twilight Team, sitting on the seats at the front playing some musical instruments. I stayed long enough to see quite a crowd gather. There were a few homeless people who got right into the singing, even shouting at various appropriate spots. There was a neighbour walking home from Woolworths who stopped and picked up a tin whistle to join in the jam. I saw a young mum with a couple of kids stop and join the fun. That was our mission, embodied and lived right there. To see the barriers that normally separate people melt is pure inspiration. Julian and Katherine created a moment where there was no good or bad, in or out, saved or lost, sick or well, housed or homeless. There was, “just us” and I went home more alive for having witnessed this vision of what could be.

That’s enough, thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

                
Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Graham is a personal friend of our family.
This is this weeks weekly newsletter from the wayside chapel.



Dear Inner Circle,

First thing this morning a man stopped me with an infectious smile. He pointed to his face in a way that made it obvious that he was growing a beard. He put his arm around me and walked me to the front window of Wayside so that we could both see our reflection. He proudly proclaimed, “Like father, like son”. The significance of this moment was not in the beard but in the proclamation of father and son. I suspect no higher honour could be given to me.

Yesterday while walking through the cafe, I saw a woman and in passing asked, “How are you going?” Her reply was, “My life is like a rigged game of snakes and ladders.” I paused to look into her face. If ever there was a high milage face, it's this one and yet there is a beautiful woman to behold. I wanted to say, “I’m with you” or “I’m glad you’re here” or something that showed I could see her. I couldn’t think of anything to say except, “If I had a magic wand, I’d give it to you”. She smiled for the first time and said, “If you had a magic wand, I would have stolen it by now.” She gave me a kiss on the cheek. Beautiful!

Last night I had cause to be in Woolloomooloo quite late. As I was leaving, I saw the distinct walk of an old guy that I love. He had a stroke some time ago and I’d recognise his walk anywhere. I thought that he had accommodation and it worried me to think that such an unwell and frail man might be living back out on the street and still walking around at this time of night. He’s an old-fashioned skid row type of alcoholic but there is much to love about him. When I saw him this morning in the cafe I told him that I’d seen him last night and was quite worried that he should be out on the street so late. His yellow-stained but soft hands both grabbed mine and he said, “Thank you for worrying about me because I don’t have the time to worry about me.” This dear old man is much-loved by everyone at Wayside. A week ago he sat on the side of a silly conversation I was having with some young people who were likening their lives to cakes. They asked me, “If you were a cake, what kind of cake would you be?” My lovely skid row friend piped into the conversation saying, “Unfortunately someone dipped my cake into alcohol.” He knew he’d cracked a funny joke; his timing was perfect and his face and mine met at that moment. The mostly dirty, blood-coloured face had lit up in a burst of hilarity. A perfect toothless smile broke into a belly laugh. None of us really knew what to say next and I was kind of relieved for the natural end. As he shuffled away I knew I was mightily privileged to have shared a laugh with a lovely man.

A young, articulate, successful man sat in my office this week and I have his permission to tell this story. Some years ago he survived the most dramatic attempt at suicide. Today he’s in a long-term relationship; he has beautiful children and more wealth than most of us would understand. In the early part of our conversation he began to tell me that he has certain needs that are not being met. I stopped him. If unmet needs is where the conversation begins, there is no happy way to finish the conversation. Nothing human and life-giving comes from the project of getting your needs met. All the endings are unhappy. Sometimes a kind of mutual need-meeting arrangement looks human in the short term but it’s a temporary illusion. I always make it clear to people that I don’t do counselling. I’d rather relate to people as Graham. There are plenty of good counsellors around. I told him that the longer he sooks about his needs, the more comprehensive they will become. He’ll only find life by losing it. It’s not his attitude that needs to change but the direction of his feet. He’s made an appointment to see me next week so I’m comforted to know he’s curious and not offended.

You may think I’m something of a cracked record but we’re right out of socks, undies and blankets again. So many times you have responded with extraordinary generosity to give our city’s most vulnerable the dignity that comes with a clean pair of undies or socks. If you could jump in again we’d be most grateful. Perhaps you could run an undie drive in the office or a sock or blanket drive in a club or church. I give you our deepest thanks on behalf of the knickerless.

Thank you for being part of our wonderful inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

                
Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From The Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

 Please note Graham is a family friend and a relative through marriage.

Dear Inner Circle,

All was pretty quiet in the nursing home on my last visit with my Mum. She was sleeping in the lounge area and I woke her up with a kiss. We held hands and she told me how blessed she was to be receiving the best of care. She pointed out various staff members and told me how much she loved them. At one stage I told her that I was thinking about writing another book. She looked me in the eye and gave me her best advice. She told me to centre myself in God rather than myself and “something of the power of prayer and the power of right living will come through your words.” She was so warm and generous with me and it took me ages to realise that she didn’t know who I was. She told my sister later that she’d been visited by the most lovely man.

Every time I went downstairs yesterday I saw Kate, one of our community workers, sitting alongside someone on our front deck. Sometimes it looked like she was sorting out minor matters for people and sometimes it looked like she was being alongside someone in their darkest moment. It was Wayside at its best and Kate is a gem. After dark I went downstairs and observed our Twilight Team in action. John (our very own saint and another of our community workers) was dressed in a Chinese style hat that had a pony tail attached and he was calling bingo numbers. This probably sounds unremarkable but the early hours of dark are often the toughest for people who have not been able to find a bed for the night. For those who have had a rough day and have nowhere to go, twilight is more than just the time when the light of day fades. John’s work was not about “legs 11” or “two fat ladies 88”, it was a stunning, breathtaking, hopeful act of love and engagement. The cafe was busy and Mitzi, who leads the Twilight Team, was overseeing everything in her unique, gentle way. As I walked away, I was never more proud to be a part of such a team. A man and a woman joined me as I walked up the street. They are clearly in love and many times in the day I had seen them in a deep embrace. Part of me wanted to say, “Get a room” but under the circumstances, such an expression could not have been more cruel. They carried with them some warm clothes that we’d found and several blankets. I guess they were headed to a nearby park for the night. As I climbed into my own warm bed last night, I couldn’t help but think of these two and hope that their love made the cold bearable.

The other day I read that in London people are erecting “homeless spikes”. Just like pigeons are kept off window sills, homeless people are being kept off public places by spikes. The older I get the more I think I’m an alien in this world. I understand and support the notion that we as families and as a society should not live beyond our means but this can be done without making victims of the poor. We can be humane and careful if we choose to do so. Pain can be shared without looking for someone to blame. For the foreseeable future I can't see how Australia could have the cheek to talk to any other country about human rights. We are in a moment where good people must stand up and speak up. We need to assert again the dignity of the human person and insist our leaders turn a “fair go” from an empty cliche to real, living policies. I urge every member of the inner circle not just to be upset about the current trends but to act. Do something lovely for someone. Let your words be more than noise in the air. Donate to ease the burden of someone who is sleeping rough or who has hit hard times. Let your vote of confidence in humanity move from your head to your heart and to your wallet. For those who are long term members of this inner circle, you’ll know I only ask for money twice a year; at Christmas and at the end of financial year, so if you’re in a position to do so, please give to our winter appeal here before June 30.

We will gather tomorrow morning at Wayside to lay to rest a woman whose personality animated this place for more than 30 years. I’ll miss her laugh and sense of fun. Our friend died at age 47 and every one of those years was a battle. This lady has proved that the highest and most noble is revealed in difficult circumstances rather than when the way is easy. I predict a large funeral and a mighty outpouring of love for a woman whose presence added grace to our days.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

PS. If you're around next Monday, I'd love to see you at a special 'Wayside Voices' event we're having in our Community Hall from 6pm to 8pm. People from our community will be sharing their own personal experiences of 'love over hate' and what it means to them. There is nothing more powerful than stories about love triumphing over hate. More details here.

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

                 




This email was sent to geoff.g.thompson@gmail.com by graham@thewaysidechapel.com   | Privacy Policy  

                    

From the Wayside by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

Nothing gives me more joy than to have someone try to explain to me how grace works. A lovely man whose life’s journey has been as tough as any that I have known, sat with me yesterday to share something of his journey back to life. He was a street dweller but today he holds quite a senior job. He had no money, no credit and no recent work history and so the jump back into the workforce was quite a daunting leap. He sat in our cafe one day pondering all that was before him when one of our angels put something in his pocket. It turned out to be a gift voucher for $200 so that he could go and buy some business shirts. Those shirts became something of a symbol of the goodness of the giver and of his massive life turn around.

The year that passed soon saw him put on so much weight that the shirts he treasured, no longer fit, but he kept them and liked to look at them. Recently he decided that it was wrong for him to hang on to the shirts when their value was really just sentimental. He lamented there will be someone in the world who would need them and be able to use them. After pondering this for some time, this week he gave the shirts to someone he knew could use them. “As I’m talking to you Graham, look at my arms, I’ve got goose bumps”. Last Saturday while volunteering at Wayside, someone walked into our front door here carrying a suit bag and asked for this man by name. Inside was six new business shirts, in his size. “This is how it works Graham. The more you give away, the more of you there is!”
In a particularly busy moment yesterday my phone rang. I shouldn’t have answered because someone was sitting in front of me and someone else was waiting at my door for the current interview to end. I answered because I was expecting an important call so I excused my bad manners and took the call. “Guess who” said the voice on the other line. “I have no idea in the world”. “Guess then” he repeated. “I’m sorry but I’m so busy today that I don’t have any time for games. Please tell me your name and how I can help.” By now I’m getting annoyed and seriously thinking about hanging up. “I once came from behind you in the cafe and put my hands over your eyes and said, "Guess who”. I have not the slightest recall of what must have been an endearing moment. He quickly told me his name and a bit of his story. Suddenly I remembered to whom this annoying voice belonged. My heart sank because I remembered a man so disempowered that to even ring me would have been an act of some courage. I have to confess that for a little while I thought I was too important to deal with someone like this. I’d lost my way. I was a prime example of a big wheel with an empty centre. I’m thankful for his courage and I’m grateful that he melted me yesterday and saved me from a day of impressive, driven, time poor, non salvation.

You can help Wayside in a big way without spending a cent. Everyone from Claudia Karvan to my own sister have been submitting photographs of themselves holding a Dick Smith Foods product. Dick is giving $1 million to charity and will allocate the money based on how many people send him photos holding his products. We could be allocated up to $50,000 if enough of you send him such a photo. Send your photo to charity@dicksmithfoods.com.au and don’t forget to nominate The Wayside Chapel in your email as your preferred charity. Click here for more information.

There is a good hearted but quite mad man who has lived on the streets around here for longer than anyone can remember. Wayside is important to him for everything from food to company. Everyone loves him even though he rarely makes any sense. This morning while walking down the street, he spotted me and was clearly happy to see me. He held his can of coke high in the air as if he was about to propose a toast. “Here’s looking up your chooks,” he said. That was one of the most bizarre toasts I’ve ever heard, but never the less one of the warmest and I was pleased to share the moment with such a lovely old sausage.

So, thank you for being part of this inner circle and “here’s looking up your chooks”,

Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

 Graham Long is a Family Friend and brother of one of our in law relatives.

Dear Inner Circle,

Here’s a first! A note came to my desk yesterday with $30 in it. The note said, “I stole a bag from the front of your building yesterday and I didn’t realise that there would be money in it. Could you please find whoever lost their bag yesterday and give them back this $30. I’m keeping the bag because I need it.” How quaint is that? We have a thief with a conscience. I’m not sure if the thief reads this note but if so, I’d like to express my thanks for being able to recognise how important $30 is to someone who has “fallen by the wayside”.

A man recently asked me to take photos of all his jewellery and to make notes about who will inherit it after his death. I took photos of each piece even though it looked like there was nothing of any real worth among it and I made notes about where it should go after the man’s death. Eventually I asked the obvious question, “Are you expecting to die soon?”. “Tonight,” he said. This was not my most comfortable moment of the week. As he told me of a life of physical and emotional pain, I felt something of a longing for death that actually made sense. It was sad to think a journey could be so unrelentingly bleak that there seemed to be no beauty and nothing funny left. I’m not sure what he expected of me but I reminded him that I have no magic powers. As much as I’d love to wave a wand and help the man fall in love with life, my only gift really was to be a tower of weakness by his side. I told him that I’d be off to Canberra and then South Australia for a couple of weeks and joked that if he wanted a truly classy funeral, he might like to hang on for two more weeks. As I said this, the man smiled and I saw enough of a glimmer of hope to make me think he’ll still be here when I get back.

Robyn and I are off to Canberra this weekend because I am nominated by New South Wales as a Local Hero finalist in the Australian of the Year Awards. Because I know well that there is no such thing as a single human person, I also know that there is no such thing as a singular hero. Every achievement is shared as is every failure. Provided everyone understands that this Wayside achievement is shared by my family, our board, our staff members, our volunteers, the many officials of the church who could have tried to turn us into a sausage machine but instead have encouraged us and celebrated our victories and the many people who I’ve met from the street who taught me about life and love, then, I’ll accept any award and I'll readily admit we are part of something heroic and that there is nothing more we’d love than for this to be seen as a gift to Sydney, NSW and the whole of the country. There are other worthy contenders for the same award so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens. The ceremony will be televised from the lawns of Parliament House Canberra on ABC TV at 6pm on Saturday. It’s an honour to be nominated and it will be no disgrace to miss out.

Given Australia Day is this weekend, it seems like a good time to tell you about an initiative of a truly great Australian. Dick Smith has supported The Wayside Chapel since the 1970s and continues to provide significant donations on a regular basis. We love Dick Smith and we love what he stands for. This year, Dick Smith Foods will give away $1 million to charities. Where this money goes will be decided by people who submit a photo of themselves with Dick Smith Foods products that they have purchased. If you want to help Wayside receive a donation, send or text* a photo of yourself with a Dick Smith Foods product to charity@dicksmithfoods.com.au, making sure you nominate The Wayside Chapel with your submission. Click here for more information. If enough votes come in, we could receive up to $50,000.

On Tuesday Robyn and I are off to Adelaide to catch up with my lovely old Mum for a few days and then we’ll fly to Port Lincoln and  drive for quite a way to a place called Coffin Bay. I’m not sure that even God knows where this place is but it’s a special place to a young couple whose wedding I will perform there. The groom is the son of my little sister. I'll be back the week after next.

With love from all here by the Wayside to you, our amazing inner circle,
Graham

*If you put our email address in the phone number field for texting, your message and photo will be received.

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Graham Long is a family friend and slightly distant  relative via family marriage.
He is the Pastor of the Wayside Chapel in Kings Cross,Sydney.
His newsletter is sent out weekly to his "Inner Circle".
There are many supporters  of the Wayside Chapel and it's work in the "Inner Circle"



Dear Inner Circle,

Surprises happen here on a daily basis. I remember walking into our Chapel once to conduct a wedding only to find the bride and the groom using the most foul language on each other at volumes that could be heard all through Kings Cross. I’m not a detective but judged this as being a difficult time to be pledging undying love. I’m not a counsellor either because my best efforts to calm this situation led to them physically throwing things at each other. I walked away but in a bizarre Wayside moment the couple came back a few hours later and I conducted their wedding. I’ve long since stopped making guesses about people’s suitability for marriage for the years have taught me that no one is in a position to know such things and that my judgements were usually wrong anyway. I saw the same couple today. They are together and drug free and each in awe of the other’s success with sobriety. They told me about their difficult road to recovery and how they had each helped the other. They didn’t really need to tell me anything because one glance at them said it all.

A woman who has spent many years living on the street said to me today, “I saw you this morning walking down the street, holding Robyn’s hand.” “We like each other,” I said. “How long have you been married?” she asked. “42 years,” I said. She looked at me like I’d not long landed from Mars but in a lovely way said, “Well that’s amazing.”

In another surprise on Sunday a woman came to church who I’d not seen in many years. I was delighted to see her and introduced her to a few of the locals. Lots of people use language that is a tad too dramatic for the circumstances but I was never-the-less blown away to hear her talk about how Wayside had changed her life and how she’d reached a point where she needed another dose of love. As she shared the tip of the iceberg of her journey with some, I remembered how dramatic it was at the time. Although still a young woman, she’d spent nearly all of her working life selling what can never be sold but only given. It’s a truth mostly lost in our day but you cannot take what can only be given and you cannot buy or sell what can only be given. I remember well her slow discovery that she had a soul; a personhood; a right to be and to live rather than to use and be used. As I’m writing this I’ve just recalled an amazing event when this lady landed quite a good job and held the only “I’ve-just-paid-tax party” that has probably ever been held anywhere in the world. What an honour it was to see her celebrate her achievement of pulling her weight in our community and what an honour it was to meet her again just now and see that her life has gone from strength to strength.

I’m inviting you to a party and I’d love you to save the date of Sunday, 13 April 2014. The Wayside Chapel will be 50 years old on that day. We’ll start the day with a mighty celebration at 10am in our Chapel followed by a huge street carnival. We’re shutting the street for the day and there will be stalls and jumping castles and all manner of fun things on the street. It won’t cost anything but a decision to stop and celebrate the presence of a good thing in our city and in our history.

Our Christmas Day was a success in every way. Although it was raining, street people and neighbours danced in the street together. It was a marvellous moment of mission. We really were a community of no 'them and us’. You can see photos from the day here. The new year has started with a bang. It looks to me to be far and away the busiest and biggest that I’ve ever known at Wayside. Hang on to your hats, fasten your seat belts, it could be quite a ride.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Awesome Inner Circle,

There are almost 10,000 of you in our inner circle and you are an impressive lot. One of you heard of a man’s dramatic life turn around and paid a year's rent for the man. One of you gave me enough money to remake the garden of a man that has only a short time to live. A lawyer recently read an inner circle and offered his services to a person I’d written about. A small group of you heard of another guy who landed a job after years of unemployment but needed a car so you lent the money for the man to buy a modest car. That was a loan but it was given at almost no notice and I’m pleased to say the money was repaid in full. The staff here joke about how when I ask for razors or soap or towels or blankets that the goods start marching in the front door just minutes after the note to the inner circle goes out. One member of the inner circle bought 10,000 blankets when we were running short. Storing so many blankets became a major headache but what a problem to have. Thankfully there are still plenty of blankets on hand for those in need of some warmth at night. 

We’ve reached the end of what has been an awesome year. We love our building but I’m just as proud of the team we’ve built. We have an extraordinary team of people and for each one that has toiled this year for the sake of the people we serve, I stand in awe of you and offer my thanks and admiration. For the over 680 active volunteers who serve in a wide variety of ways, I thank you for your pure gift and for inspiring the rest of us. For the members of our Board who ensure our governance and finances are right, I offer thanks on behalf of everyone. For all the companies and experts who have given their services this year for help with everything from graphic design to auditing and the bewildering number of ways in which we’ve been the object of so much good will, I offer our deepest thanks.

It’s been a year of pain, passion and purpose. I’ve sat at many death beds this year. I have sung to people as they transitioned out of this world. I’ve been called into rooms where someone’s son or someone’s daughter lies motionless, their struggles all over. I have placed my hand and said prayers at these moments with tenderness, as if it was my own son or daughter or brother or sister. I’ve witnessed some, who seemed committed to their own destruction, come to life. I’ve seen the moment of turning. I’ve heard the words, “I’ve always blamed others but you know what, Rev, it’s me that kills my own chances for life.” I’ve seen families that were decimated by drunken and hateful words reconcile and move to better days. I’ve seen marriages this year that I thought were over come back to life and I’ve witnessed forgiveness and love renewed.This year I married lots of people, buried lots of people and christened lots of people. I managed to squeeze out a book this year and it has sold and still sells well and the publicity it earned for Wayside was astonishing.

We are throwing a street party on Christmas Day as usual and you are warmly invited. There is a simple church service in the street at 10.30am. Our own choir will sing and Geoff Bullock will be on the keyboard. The short church service will be followed by our usual street party. We’ll fill the street with happy music and you’ll see street people dancing in the street. If you missed out on a voluntary role but would like to make a contribution, just come and bring a smile and a willingness to say “hi” to people and to wish them well on this special day. Share something of the joy of our mission in a community of no 'us and them'.

Thanks for being our awesome inner circle this year. The pain, joy, struggle and celebration proved once again that you can’t measure the fullness of life by how many times you breathe but rather by how many moments take your breath away.

Wishing you a happy and safe Christmas and New Year that leads to life. I’ll begin writing again in early 2014.

Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

As our plane just lifted off the tarmac in Sydney a little girl seated right behind me said, "Oh wow, Dad! I can see the whole world!" Sacred moments come to us every day and many, if not most of them, are either not seen or simply overlooked as unimportant. This little girl's sense of wonder changed the dreadfully mundane business of flying into a moment filled with wonder. The confidence of the little girl in her father was contagious. "How fast are we going now?" "How far above the clouds are we?" The barrage of questions had me straining to hear the answers because I caught the little girl's sense of confidence in her father. He knew everything. When the wheels touched the ground in Adelaide, the little girl said, "That was the funnest thing ever!"

If we allow ourselves to be addressed in sacred moments, we are transformed. I not only felt the excitement of the little girl but I remembered when I had a 4 year old girl of my own who would confidently jump into anything assuming that I knew everything and would protect her. Sacred moments change history. At my brother's recent wedding, his three fine, grown up sons stood at his side. They were a holy trinity of best men. These boys knew as well as anyone the bumpy history of their farther and the many painful failures of the past. Yet in this sacred moment they stood with their father. The facts of history had not changed but the way we looked at those facts had changed completely. In the light of this sacred moment, past hurts had become lessons, and even a means of grace that added to the wisdom and depth of the moment. The deeper the past hurts, the greater the grace.

Sacred moments, when they come, transform the future. The future, when considered in the light of the everyday, can be summarised by the word 'fate'; a kind of projection based on the past. In a sacred moment, that which we knew as fate crumbles and dissipates and, in its place, 'destiny' is revealed. My little brother has joined hands with a good woman. They are not kids; they're in their fifties but they are literally working toward a future that nobody anticipated and toward a destiny that nobody had dreamt about just a short time ago.

I'm glad to be back home and back by the Wayside. When I said good bye to my dear old Mum, we recited together Psalm 23. It's funny that she can't remember anything from the last 10 years or the last 10 minutes but she recited the Psalm perfectly. Somehow, "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for you are with me" seemed more powerful than ever coming from the mouth of this dear lady.

With love and thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

                 




This email was sent to geoff.g.thompson@gmail.com by graham@thewaysidechapel.com   | Read our Privacy Policy  

                    

From the Wayside

Dear Inner Circle,

Preventing a major life crisis can be a simple matter. Last night I sat with a woman who, in the past, had lost several years living on the street in a drunken haze and copped all the indignity that comes from a life on the street. She's reconciled with her family and has lived a productive life in the past few years. Last night she walked into my office anxious. She has good reason to be anxious but it became clear enough that it was leading her into a kind of paralysis. She's stopped eating. As we talked she kept burping in a way that interrupted her speech and looked painful. She spoke her worst fears and somehow trusted that I wouldn't belittle her by suggesting "solutions" and nor would I be overcome with the bleakness of her situation. When she walked out of my office nothing had changed except you could physically see that a burden had been lifted. She said, "All those years ago I reckon I allowed things to go on until I was overwhelmed and eventually had no other option but the street. The difference now is that I've got someone to talk to." You know what, not all of the time but most of the time, I think it is that simple. If we can overcome our instinct to "fix" people and instead allow ourselves to be alongside, most people will find a way forward or at least find the next step and that part of their burden which seems to be the darkest will be lifted when they feel they are not alone.

A woman living on the street sent me a message on Facebook last night. "Quick send me a bible verse," was the message. She doesn't own anything except a mobile phone and that is glued to her hand. She didn't tell me anything about what her sudden need was for a bible verse. I sent back, "When you pass through the fire, you will not be burned for I am the Lord the holy one and you are precious and honoured in my sight and I love you." I saw her on my way in this morning and she kissed me on the cheek and said, "Perfect". I still have no idea what drama she was living through last night.

Malcolm Turnbull will be the speaker at our next night at the Imperial Pub in Paddington on Sunday, 20 October at 6pm. I'll probably steer him away from politics if possible. I'd like this to be fun for him as well as for the rest of us. If you're inclined to want to score political points or whinge about the state of the world, I'd prefer that you do not come. He said on the tele recently, "I'm more sure of Malcolm and Lucy than I am of just Malcolm". His statement wasn't picked up but I thought it was lovely and I'd like him to start there (if he's willing) when he talks with us. Arrive about 6pm and organise food and a drink, Malcolm will talk, followed by Q and A and it will be all over at 8pm. Numbers really are quite limited and it is essential that you register your intention to come with Guy Cooper.

I am going away for the next two weeks which means there will be no note to the inner circle. I'll be off to Adelaide on Saturday where I will conduct the wedding of my youngest brother. A gathering of the Long clan will be noisy but it will be lovely to see everyone again.

Behave till I get back. Thank you for being part of this inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside by Graham Long

 Graham Long's latest newsletter from the Wayside Chapel.
His Dad he mentions was Harold Long who some of his sermons are featured on my youtube channel Pembridge House.


Dear Inner Circle,

Our household had a bit of a fixation with Masterchef on the tele some time ago. Something about the show worried me but it's taken ages for the penny to drop. I think the thought of pantries that never end and the sight of three judges shoving beautiful food in their mouths and already full bellies and then making judgments is ugly. What has worried me is the complete lack of "gift" that is appropriate for food and for eating. I was raised by a man who stopped and thanked the holy fire before he ate any meal. Someone had always prepared the food and so at the end of every meal, someone had to be thanked. Even when we ate a pie at the Coles cafeteria (a rare highlight that was newsworthy for weeks), someone had to be thanked. I remember being embarrassed by Dad who thanked God out loud in public and I was bewildered while I held his hand and we went looking for someone to thank after eating the pie. I think he ended up thanking the lady at the cash register. I guess it was not just that he was religious but also because he was raised in Melbourne during the Great Depression and so for him, food and clothing always came to him with a strong sense of "gift".

Now we eat so often in restaurants and a natural exchange of gift and gratitude has been replaced by an exchange of money and expectation of value for money or satisfaction with the dining experience. I think we're losing something really important. In my boyhood, we ate together seated round a table and we talked to each other. None of us were keen on pumpkin and one day when Dad had finished saying grace, my sister's plate was piled high with pumpkin, including that from my father's plate. We laughed and sometimes battled and caught up with one another or listened to what ever it was our parents thought we needed to hear. Eating was a social event. Now, I think you can eat alone to nourish your body which is fine but a truly human act is social. It's a human act to eat together. I think to make a point of eating together would help to overcome the ugly sense of entitlement that is everywhere before us. I recently saw someone on their high horse, sending food back to the kitchen and I was embarrassed. In a restaurant, the natural relationship between the preparer of the food and the consumer of the food is broken. Consumers are often ugly individuals. Consumers live in economies. People live in families or in friendships or even in societies. Consumers are interested in value. People are interested in connection and sharing. This morning we had the most wonderful breakfast at Wayside. Our executive team and some other staff put on breakfast for our volunteers. Our ambassador David Wenham came and manned the BBQ. I don't think we are expert cooks but we certainly prepared and presented the food with love for our beautiful volunteers. We must have had about 70 volunteers for breakfast and the buzz was beautiful.

At a large funeral at Wayside yesterday I heard street people speak of a young man who had recently died. This was a wild lad in some respects but the thing that was said over and over was that whatever he had, he shared. There were several stories of people who on a cold night simply jumped under his blanket with him. No one was ever rejected. People who live in a world of stuff are concerned mostly with how they can get more stuff or more for the cheapest price. The world of stuff is not an attribute of wealth or poverty. It doesn't matter if you are looking to get your next meal or your next million. Stuff doesn't change lives but a gift does. You can only truly receive a gift when you see a giver. So many people came to the funeral yesterday because their lives had been changed by a gift.

Recently I gave a man a little job to do at Wayside and he's been faithful in serving others in the direction in which I pointed him. He's learning to make a gift of his life and energies and there have been a couple of hiccups as there always are on a journey like this one. He sent me a text me yesterday to say that he'd lost confidence in himself and that he was going to give up. This morning I saw him and he waved me over to his table. "I'd be sabotaging myself to stop now wouldn't I, Rev?" I could dance around the room with the joy that comes from seeing such a fellow learn how to live.

Thanks for being part of this inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

 Below is the latest of Graham Long's Inner Circle Newsletter.
He is the Pastor of The Wayside Chapel in King's Cross,Sydney.
You'll find lots of these on this blog.
Graham has also just launched a book he has written.
You will find a link to media interviews below this newsletter.
Graham and His wife Robyn are family friends of ours and distant relatives by marriage.
His Dad Harold Long was instrumental in my becoming a Christian.
Listen to the interviews and be enriched.

Dear Inner Circle,

My heart is breaking for a woman who each day this week has shown up here drunk, unable to express her pain in any other way but to bash her head against a brick wall. It's a most distressing sight and there is no way to communicate with someone so drunk except to show kindness. Each day we've had to call for help and our volunteers and staff, police and ambos have shown extraordinary patience and care and copped the most vile abuse from the mouth of this troubled soul. Each day she's been restrained and placed in the ambulance which drives down the street to the muffled yells of, "Get F#%^&* you Mother F#$#@%^". To be clear, I probably didn't hear the words, "Get, you or Mother". I'm inspired by the tenderness shown by our people and by police and ambos and I'm left wondering what kind of pain causes you to bash your own head in that way. This is one of those situations when we do whatever we can but are pretty helpless except to feel the pain of a beautiful life being wasted.

As just such a scene was being played out one day and everyone's attention was demanded, I was walking toward Wayside and I came across a man in his thirties, sitting against a wall in our alley way, sobbing. I sat next to him for a bit and asked, "What's up?" He said to me, "Everything I can see is ugly and I'm ugly." I believe I might have caught this man in a moment of "turning". He couldn't see any positive paths ahead of him but he just refused to give up on the idea that his life should be more than what he knows. I said to him, "You know how today is different from most of your days? Today you're not primarily concerned about how to kill your pain but rather you're wondering if there is more and something that up to now, you've not known." Such a moment will not be wasted if he now acts. Sentiment is of no value until it makes the feet move. I'm hoping his feet are going to move him to our AA group.

It looks like a wonderful group are coming to the Imperial Pub at Paddington this Sunday night. The purpose of the night is to create community. We're hoping people will relax, enjoy the atmosphere and a meal. We're suggesting you arrive around 6ish and organise food and then at 7pm I will speak on the subject, "There is no such thing as a single human person." That will be followed by some Q and A and then I hope lots of conversations around the room. "Meeting" is the object. I promised that next month on September 8, Malcolm Turnbull would speak but it now turns out that our General Election will be held the day prior and it would be inhuman to expect Malcolm to do any public speaking that night. He's promised to speak at this event in the near future. When I get a speaker for the September event I'll let you know. There will be no promotion, no fundraising, just community. It's not too late to book a place for Sunday night, just email Guy Cooper and let him know that you're coming.

On my way through the door a big, beaming smile stopped me in my tracks. I said, "You look like you just found $50". The darling man who's been really struggling for some months said, "I slept in a real bed last night." He's been sleeping in parks or riding the train to Newcastle every night but yesterday we found him a bed and for the next 7 nights he is assured of a good sleep. This one beautiful smile today has reminded me that I haven't got much to complain about.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

PS. If you want to catch up on the media around the launch of my book, you can do so here.


 http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/in_the_media.php?utm_source=GraphicMail&utm_medium=email&utm_term=NewsletterLink&utm_campaign=Inner+Circle+2012&utm_content=
Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

What could be more wonderful than having a pair of girls giggling in your house for four days? Even though I am a grandfather, I've just spent the last few days playing games and having fun in a quest to celebrate being alive. For four days I pulled on all the doors that said "push" and pushed on all the doors that said "pull" and eventually looked at my girls in stunned confusion while they laughed like mad and tried to explain to me the difference between the two words. How priceless to go the McDonald's drive through and order a Chinese meal with the helpless laughter going on in the back seat. Eventually I had to apologise to the girls and to the voice on the other end of the drive through speaker to calm things down so that I could then order pizza. Our eight year old said to me, "Do you know the difference between you and me, Papa?" "No," I said. "I only make a mistake once," she said.

Falling in love with our girls again is to fall in love with their dad again (their dad, our son, died nearly five years ago). They have a beautiful dad who is worthy of their adoration, (technically a step-dad but in reality, there are no "steps" in love) and the most wonderful mum but in the way they laugh, the way they are up for fun at any time, their love of life and even the shape of their feet, a man they will never know is truly present.

Some of the people who inspire me the most are those who live with mental illness and find a way to cope and make a contribution to the community. I just had morning tea with a man of extraordinary intelligence who never-the-less has wrestled debilitating mental illness for about 30 years. He is well read and well informed on most matters of world politics. He is keen to add whatever weight he can to the quest to make this world a better place. His conversation sometimes flies out into the stratosphere in a bizarre manner and yet he fights to return always to the present moment and to keep continuity in our conversation. Although the words and thoughts jumped around a bit, a most beautiful face kept eye contact with me and his love of humanity and desire for justice was constant. He told me that he was going to have an early lunch at the Salvation Army and I walked with him, wondering if the Salvos really were active in this part of Kings Cross. He led me into Wayside. Perhaps I need a uniform. We pin medals on lots of chests of people who are just doing their jobs but I looked into the face of real courage just now and I'm in awe of a truly great Australian.

The hopes and dreams of people impacted by mental health issues have been collected and creatively transformed into a deck of 52 cards to inspire others to follow their dreams. The project, called the Deck of Dreams, is the brain child of our very own Jen Lee who works in our Day to Day Living programme. Each card showcases unique artworks depicting people's dreams. On the back of each card the artist has written a positive, real and inspirational message of hope. There will be an official launch of this project next week on Wednesday, 24 July in our community hall. You are invited to this event at 6pm. It's free with nibbles provided but we need you to RSVP to Bec McKenna. Click here for more information.

My book, Love over Hate: finding life by the wayside, will be in book stores from Thursday, 1 August but as a special offer for the Inner Circle, you can purchase a signed copy of my book a couple of weeks before it hits the shelves. Buy it here. From your purchase, 30% of the RRP will go directly to Wayside and it will be sent to you free of postage charges. We have a supply of books at Wayside now too so if you are dropping past during business hours, we can sell you a book immediately.

Thanks for being part of this inner circle, 
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

You cannot take what can only be given. You can extract endless experience from the world. You can travel around it; you can measure it, weigh it, name it, classify it but such an act does not come close to having the world give itself to you. You can extract experience from another person. You can become the expert among all the people you know and meet. People can be measured, weighed and classified but none of these things comes close to the act where a person gives themselves to you. The act of love is an act of self giving so love can never be taken. I met a brute recently who has raped in order to get his needs met. To his neediness however is added a truck load of emptiness. He's more desperate and more alone now than at any time in his life even though he has many children to many different women.

After 42 years of marriage, I've come to appreciate that a healthy relationship is one that moves from fulfilment to longing and back and back again. When I was younger, the 'longing' phase felt wrong, like as if something urgent needed to be done. I didn't realise when young that no matter how in love you might be with the other, sooner or later, someone has to wash the car or do the shopping. In my old age, I've come to appreciate that my marriage is tested, formed and strengthened in the 'longing' phase of our life together. What's true of relationships is also true for organisations although we don't move from intimacy to longing and back again but we move from "mission" to "wishin" and back and back again. No organisation can live in their mission. Mission is achieved in extraordinary moments and lost as it must be while real and unromantic work is achieved. There is nothing wrong with an organisation in a "wishin" phase of its life. It is in such a phase that the organisation is formed and tested and built. It's not the end of the world when "mission" seems far away. It's as healthy as it is for two lovers to be getting on with life but longing for their next meeting. So many people ditch their relationships in the longing phase and so many organisations wreak havoc on good people in their "wishin" phase. But ditching the wife or the leader and jumping forever into new projects is no substitute for the maturity that comes from knowing that longing and wishing are your good friends.

Last night it was cold and wet and Robyn and I were both hungry so we decided to eat out at a local restaurant. So many think that intimacy is something that happens in a bedroom but the conversation in the restaurant, over good food and a glass of wine rated a high distinction on the intimacy scale as did several conversations yesterday. A man who is struggling with many things yesterday finished his conversation by saying, "thank you for loving me". All real living is meeting.  On the way home home from the restaurant, it was raining quite heavily. I put my head down and walked briskly but decided to seek shelter under Robyn's little umbrella. Oddly enough, Robyn seemed shy to share her bit of shelter with me until I looked into her face and found it wasn't Robyn I was walking with.

Yesterday I was called downstairs by a man who was asking for prayer. He told me a story that is too traumatic to retell here. I had my doubts about the truth of the story but no doubt about the trauma that he was living through. If true it was dreadful and if untrue, even more so. A good looking man with a bodybuilders physique, was in a world of pain and we managed to get him scheduled and in the right kind of care. Although Wayside wasn't really the right place for him, he kept saying, "Where else would I turn?" I'm glad he had somewhere to turn.

Thanks for being part of this inner circle,

Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

                 




This email was sent to geoff.g.thompson@gmail.com by graham@thewaysidechapel.com   | Read our Privacy Policy  

                    

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

It's not the warmest of days and I just saw a woman wearing a blanket and nothing else. I've not seen her before but I introduced myself and told her that if she walks to Wayside we'd find her some clothes to wear. "They won't help me there," she said. "Yes they will," I promised. She toddled off toward Wayside, adjusting her blanket as she walked. Modesty didn't seem to be her first priority.

At the front door today a young woman stopped me. I've seen this face before but it literally ages by the week. Some months ago I would have said this was a teenager and today I could believe this young woman was 30 years old. She might be 20. I observed that although we'd not talked that I'd seen her around and thought she looked like her journey had been tough. "I can survive anything," she said. "It's like they tell you about bush fires. You just put your head down, stay still without panicking and wait for the danger to pass." I thought it wasn't bad advice in some ways except that while her words were telling me how tough she was, her face was telling me that she was a frightened little girl. She suddenly changed tone and said, "Can you pray for me?" I usually avoid situations like this because I get uncomfortable that people think that prayer is about some form of magic instead of some form of presence. Her voice almost disappeared as she mouthed the words, "I'm so lost. My dad died recently and people say he was a monster. He was a monster to me but he's all I had". Her pretty eyes filled with water and she mouthed some more words that I couldn't lip read. We were on the seat out the front so I put one arm around her and held her hand with the other and I prayed Psalm 130. "Out of the depths I cry to you O Lord; Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy. If you O Lord kept a record of sins who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness and so we are in awe." Still with no voice this dear young woman whispered, "thank you".

A few weeks ago a kind angel donated some really good quality guitars and since then I've been amazed by how many people who visit here can play quite competently. Having someone play and sing so often really helps to calm the atmosphere. I'm so grateful for this gift. Another angel paid for quite a few of our staff to go and hear the Dalai Lama last week and so the place is buzzing as so many of our people jumped at the opportunity. What a generous gift to have been made to Wayside.  I've decided that I'm going to the next staff meeting wearing our bed sheets and I reckon I'll have everyone's full attention.

Yesterday I had a session with a bully. He raises his voice and steps up intimidatingly close and makes eye contact with sustained violence implied. Mostly he gets what he wants and the more he gets it, the needier he becomes. I've seen him take the last dollar off people who are too weak to stand up to him and the longer I've known him the less of him there is. He is alone in the world and he's been snatching for so long that he's emptied himself to a hollow shell. If only he knew that you cannot take what can only be given.

Today I have an appointment with a man who hasn't had a drink in five weeks after having spent 20 years in a drunken fog. There is a tough road ahead but there is a look of wonder and surprise on his face because he is alive and awake and okay. He's enjoying being able to walk in a straight line. He walked in last week when the Honeybees were singing and he literally stopped like he was in the presence of angels and said to me, "I feel like all of this is just for me." I looked into this lovely old lined and awestruck face and said, "I think it is".

Thanks for being part of this inner circle,
Graham

PS. We're currently advertising for the role of Communications Assistant. You can find the position description here. We've also got a volunteer information session happening at Wayside tonight at 6pm. If you'd like to come along, you can register here.

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

"Disgusting," said a elderly street dweller as he passed me last week. I learned that the door to the hall had been left open and that was the cause of the outrage. This dear old sausage had a stroke about a year ago and ever since he slowly shuffles, dragging his mostly useless left side. This must be dreadful frustration for him. I saw him once step out of our lift and as he shuffled out toward me, he said that all the doors on the fourth floor had been left open and he'd shut them all for me. He thought this state of affairs was, "disgusting". A couple of weeks ago he shuffled into the chapel in the middle of our Sunday service. The shuffle is so loud and so slow that there is not much choice but to give a welcome and wait until he finally found a seat. On this particular day he shuffled all the way to the front row and then he noticed that someone had left a cup of water on the altar. "Disgusting," he proclaimed and started a slow shuffle out again.

The public rebuke from this paralysed old man caused me concern, not because his religious sensibilities were offended but because the man's complexion was bright purple. He looked dreadful and smelled worse than any other human being I've ever been near. I have a large nose. My daughter has told me many times how grateful she is not to have the "Long nose". Notwithstanding the size of my nose, my sense of smell is not good. Given my vocation, I've always thought of this as something of a blessing. If I can smell anything, you can be sure it is a massive odour. After church John, our of our Community Workers, got talking to the man who ended up telling John that his gammy leg was sore. He pulled up his trouser leg and revealed the worst infection that we'd ever seen. We called the troops from St Vincent's Hospital (the Homeless Health team) and they said it was the worst infection that they'd ever seen. We got him admitted to hospital but we learned that he checked himself out yesterday. No doubt he'll shuffle in sometime today and we'll call a nurse to change his dressing. I haven't made this dear old fellow sound very attractive but he really is a dear. I don't mind being told every now and then that what I'm doing is, "disgusting".

A fit looking young fellow spoke of how he was born with frontal lobe damage because of his mother's drinking. She eventually died in a drunken stupor on a park bench. The boy was brought up by a string of foster parents, some of whom were kind but some of whom were cruel people. From the age of only 11 years old this fellow began hanging around Kings Cross. He led a life that revolved around addiction and everything he ever tried seemed to bury him further into neediness. He ended up owing lots of money to some serious people and last week he took his own life. He was a week in his bedsit unit before anyone looked for him or discovered his body. This man has an older brother who has really made something of his life after an equally, if not worse, start in life. He owes his life to the support that he found in AA. So yet another funeral next week for yet another young man that died before he lived.

You probably know that we're big fans of the Honeybees Choir. They've agreed to make a special appearance on Sunday, 16 June at our 10am church service. We'll build our little service around the choir that day and I can promise that it will be fun as well as inspiring. If you know what a lift a first class choir can give, then make a note of the date and make sure some of this gift is shared by you.  We've also got a comedy night happening on Thursday, 30 May to raise money for Wayside. If you'd like to have a giggle and help us out at the same time, we'd love to see there. For more information and tickets, click here.

It's been a funny, heartbreaking, inspiring and frustrating week; pretty much normal.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

                 




This email was sent to geoff.g.thompson@gmail.com by graham@thewaysidechapel.com   | Read our Privacy Policy