ONE CRAZY NIGHT!

I had been working all evening on fundraising when my team leader, Kyle, encouraged me to take a break and have a beer.  We went to MURPHY'S PUB with several other missionaries.  Kyle immediately went over to a table of random guys and struck up a conversation while I talked with Brian, another missionary, across the room.  The whole table of guys was laughing and having a great time. 20 minutes later, the whole table stood up to leave. Intrigued, Brian and I walked over and introduced ourselves to the guys Kyle had met.


As Kyle closed the tab, the students told me that they were all going to JOE'S.  Joe's Brewery is insane... in the worst kind of way.  It's the bar where everyone goes to hookup.  One of the guys jokingly summed it up by saying, "At Joe's you pay $5 to get an STD!"

Standing in the long line outside the bar, the guys told me the topic of conversation:  True love.  The guys originally thought people should just do whatever they want.  But now, they were beginning to see that true love requires us to sacrifice what we want for the beloved's needs.  To seal the deal, we told them we'd demonstrate on the dance floor...

JOE'S BREWERY

In the midst of the "bumping-and-grinding", we asked girls to dance with us in a different kind of way.  They were hesitant at first but loved it by the end!  We treated them with brotherly love and they were astonished!  Kyle danced with the same girl for over 45 minutes and her face was glowing with joy.

One of the guys we had been talking to was in awe.  He said, "You guys are seriously messin' with my mind... I stopped believing in that kind of thing a long time ago."  I invited him outside and we started to talk.  He opened up his heart to me about the hurt he experienced in past relationships and I explained how God desires for him to have healing and freedom.  He was genuinely awestruck about Catholicism!  I gave him my number so we could talk later.

My heart breaks for all of those people in despair at Joe's Brewery.  They've given up on true love and now settle for living for pleasure, like animals.  They deserve so much more and it was an incredible blessing to show them that true love and happiness is real and attainable through Christ.  Friday night was one of the best nights of my life.  THANKS FOR MAKING ALL OF THIS POSSIBLE!