“I took him and cleaned him. He clung to me and sobbed.”
The sour smell of beery vomit filled the room.
"Merry Christmas."
He was lying on his side on the floor. His arm was over his eyes and the strain of hugging the darkness showed on his face. He had flinched when I brought the light, but those were the first words out of his mouth.
"Thanks" I said. "Let me help you up." He rolled over a bit and reached up to my hand. The vomit was on his hand, on his shirt, and in his hair. He didn't look great and he didn't smell great. But there was something in his eye, there was something in his heart. He wanted more than this. He wanted out.
That's why I was there.
I took him and cleaned him. He clung to me and sobbed. The grief of his life was too much for him to bear. All the wasted days and nights, all the hatred, greed and envy. The despair that had led to the last few weeks of his life had overwhelmed him.
I took him and cleaned him. I loved him and held him. I forgave him. I took his sin and paid his price. His despair almost killed him, it DID kill me.
That's why I am here.
Merry Christmas.
My buddy Geoff serves with the Hammond Plains Christian Church in Nova Scotia, Canada.