| Were going to love the hell out of Baltimore. I didnt know what I would find when I arrived at the Saving Station on the corner of Milton Avenue and Oliver Street in East Baltimore. I stood with three other people, hand-in-hand, praying that God would anoint the corner with the Holy Spirit. Little did we know that God was about to do something awesome and powerful in that seemingly powerless place. The very first evening we were met with a challenge. At the close of the worship service, a man approached one of the clergywomen stating that if he did not get into rehab that night, he would hurt himself or someone else. Six (count them ... six) clergywomen took that man to Johns Hopkins Hospital to see if we could secure one of the beds promised by the city for the Saving Stations. We sat in the emergency room at Hopkins until 12:30 a.m., sharing lives and stories amidst all manner of Gods children. And although we ultimately could not secure a long-term bed, we each agreed that God had called us there, if for no other reason than to see the look on the triage nurses face when the man pointed to us and said, Theyre all with me! (And he didnt even know women could be pastors.) Gods anointing flowed throughout the week. When we arrived Monday morning for the start of Vacation Bible School, there were children already waiting. I would say that was a metaphor for the entire week: the children are waiting. Every time people pulled up to that tent, there were children.  But it wasnt just the children who were waiting and ready for our presence. Each night brought more than a hundred people to the tent, except for Monday. Monday was different. On that evening, as we shared in a parade and a circus, complete with snow balls, popcorn and cotton candy, the block was so full you couldnt drive down it. We drew a huge a crowd. As I got into my car, a woman threw her arms around me with a huge smile and said, You do not know how much we needed this; thank you! I wanted to thank her and everyone there for allowing us to be in their midst, but there were no words to explain to her what that neighborhood was doing for us, and how much we needed to be there. On that corner, we were all Gods children together. On that corner, as the Rev. Iris Farabee-Lewis put it, All that mattered was Gods love. It didnt matter who we were, or where we came from. Under that tent, Gods love brought us together. Or, in the words of a little three year-old named Iesha, Youre my neighbor! The Rev. Laurie Gates is pastor of Lodge Forest UMC in Edgemere. | 
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