How did His Boots start? It started the day my son died. I was angry at his friends...at Kyle. But God immediately changed my heart and my life the moment I met those kids. They loved my son in a way that most people can't understand. In all their brokenness, they were people just like the rest of us. And they needed to know they were loved, just like the rest of us.
There is so much that I will miss about Kyle, but there are two things that I pray will make a difference in others lives for many years to come.
Kyle loved unconditionally. He loved fiercely...his family and his friends. His greatest regret was that his addictions hurt those he loved the most. Kyle loved those who needed someone to love them...the hurting, the poor, the dirty, the lost, the broken, the hopeless. I have seen Kyle give away his coat, his shoes, his bible, his bicycle, his last dollar...over and over again without hesitation. He just knew that someone needed it more than he did. He understood why people chose to remove him from their lives. And that understanding gave him the ability to accept those who were unacceptable.
Kyle loved Jesus. During the many times that Kyle was clean, his life was devoted to his relationship with Jesus. Devoted to studying the bible and sharing with others. While we were returning from New Orleans after picking up his remains, his sister was looking through his wallet. There were three things that Kyle never let out of his sight...his boots, his hat and his wallet. Kyle was a minimalist so everything in that wallet was important to him. Inside the wallet was his license. He couldn't do anything without that card. It was the lifeline to jobs, medical care, wire transfers...everything. He had a drawing that his fiance made for him. Just a scrap of paper but priceless in his eyes. He had a picture of his siblings. It is hard to explain an addicts love, but Kyle loved his brother and sisters. And then...there was a tattered piece of paper. One of those old tracts we all used at one time or another to share about Jesus' love for us. It had obviously been used over and over. It had been deemed important enough to keep. Kyle loved Jesus. My broken heart sings with that one little sentence. Kyle loved Jesus! He knew Him, loved Him and shared Him. And today he sits with Him. Kyle struggled, but he never stopped loving Jesus...even when he wasn't walking with Him. In one of many journals we found, Kyle had written the same quote in several places. "No one knows what goes on in my head. It is a battle zone and I am the prize. Satan may win the battles, but God will win the war".
I will miss him more than I can express. But there is so much that his life has taught me and those close to him. My hearts desire is that because of Kyle, we all will care deeper, give freer, judge less, show love where these is none and share Jesus with a world full of those who are hurting, dirty, homeless, lost and broken. Everyone needs to know they are loved.
And that's where His Boots started. Christmas, December 25, 2015. It started where Kyle left off. There 10's of thousands of nomadic kids (ages 18-35) that have chosen that life style. It is not our job to enable... it is our focus to bring hope. His Boots steps in when they are facing situation where they are loosing hope. Medical needs, eyeglasses, tooth extractions and of course, relationships.
We minister just like Jesus did...we meet the physical needs first and then build relationships to meet the spiritual needs of these amazing kids.