I've come to realize lately that I've become complacent here. I'm so used to seeing drug deals, homelessness and blighted properties that it all seems to run together into this long string of everyday events. This morning that all changed. I was driving down a familiar street in the neighborhood and just through an intersection the truck in front of me stopped for no apparent reason. Then from around the driver's side I could see and man and woman in the road and before I could figure out what was going on, he punched her in the face and she was on the ground.

Now, I know that stuff like that goes on, but I've never seen it happen, let alone happen 15 feet from me. The truck swerved around the couple and so there I sat, wondering what to do. The woman started to walk away and the man was still yelling. To be honest, my biggest concern at that point was whether or not he had a weapon on him. He moved off to the side of the road and I drove past, still in shock. I thought about calling the police but they had both moved on by the time I looked in my rearview mirror.

The whole thing still seems surreal, but it has caused me to think a great deal about the neighborhood and all that goes on here. My last post was about the Saints and how it has brought the city together, and it has, but that temporary, earthly thing cannot make the changes we need to see in this neighborhood. This has been a wake up call to remember to pray, pray, pray. Would you join me in that prayer for the redemption of this neighborhood?