LOTS - Lord of the Streets Episcopal Church

10/02/2026

Dignity in Crisis

On Sunday morning, one of our parishioners was having a mental health issue. This was after our church service, during breakfast. The man has been experiencing homelessness for a long time, and his mental health is all the worse for that.

When his food was served, he began shouting at another man at his table. One of our security guards and I moved near the table to oversee and lower the tension a bit. Then the man began shouting at a volunteer across the room, as well as towards the wall at someone who wasn't there.

Quietly and calmly, our security and I told the man it was time to go. We weren't angry. He was obviously having a mental health issue, and for everyone's well-being, he couldn't remain.

So, he began packing up his belongings. He asked if he could come back next week.

I said, "Of course you can. It's been a rough morning, and you obviously can't shout at our volunteers, but come back next week, and we'll have a better day."

He took his belongings, his breakfast, thanked me, and he left peacefully.

That was dignity revealed in a time of personal crisis. That is LOTS serving people at our best.

Brad Sullivan

09/24/2026

Sermon on Jonah 3:10-4:11 & Matthew 20:1-16

Showing compassion is how God made us to be, and can be one of the hardest things we do. Showing compassion is also one of the strongest things we do.

The anger and contempt we have for others feels like strength, but it’s really just our weakness and fear having a temper tantrum.

Real strength comes from showing compassion, being slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love.

That takes practice, too, and prayer, like much of anything worth doing, but we’re not practicing something outside ourselves or beyond ourselves. Practicing compassion and mercy is practicing at being our true selves. Practicing being slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love is practicing being our true selves.

Contempt is when we’re getting outside of ourselves and letting fear dominate. Compassion is a return home, and so, whenever we feel contempt, that’s when Jesus is calling us. “Come home.” Set aside the anger, set aside the fear and contempt, and come home to compassion, mercy, and steadfast love.

Full sermon and video: https://bradleysullivan.blogspot.com/2026/09/who-knew-god-was-so-snarky-compassion.html?spref=fb&fbclid=IwdGRleAUf4_VwZG9mBWZkaWQWUO53GI_biQmwFFfFjtFk6c-U3zUT5mV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkCjY2Mjg1NjgzNzkAAR5Of8klc7TnwthxJ1zF7AgIvmy8aksDeZ-R5n_nB_yZfXjbvlpX2UrhdTIIyQ_aem_C6iZYIMH_Gp8_msT4v0wHQ&m=1

09/18/2026

Giving to Lord of the Streets, helping a homeless brother or sister off the street.

Individual gifts are by far the largest source of our funding.

You make a difference! Vital to the success of our mission are our partners.

Through your financial gifts, God’s grace, and your service and donations of food and clothing, we are able to relieve suffering and reveal dignity through ministries and relationships with people facing homelessness.

09/11/2026

Last Sunday, Bishop Monterroso was with us to celebrate the Eucharist and to preach. He talked about all being welcome in the church.

Rather than a place reserved for the successful and worthy, the Church is a place for everyone: the worn out and weary, the lost and lonely, the successful, the also-rans, the folks with everything together, and the folks with everything falling apart.

Our traumas and our triumphs are all different, and yet we all share in trauma, and we all share in triumph. We come together as one. We live the unity of God's love, even if for a few moments. Then we go out together to share that love.

Blessings,

Brad

09/04/2026

A Positive Response to Change

Recently, we received many positive responses to our change in services. Rather than grab-and-go meals outside, with people lined up and leaving immediately, we are serving meals inside. Folks are coming in, sitting down, receiving services, and also having a meal while they are here.

Some people were of course upset by the change.

Others, however, were quite pleased. One man said, "I had come to depend on those meals, and that's a problem. I need to get back up and start caring for myself."

The next day, a woman said how much more she likes what we are doing now. "I had stopped coming here because of the trash and fights with folks outside waiting for meals. This is wonderful, and I'm going to be coming here again."

Change is always hard. This has been a good change, as we are more able now to relieve suffering and reveal dignity through ministries and relationships with people facing homelessness.

www.lotshouston.org - "Donate Now"

08/28/2026

Sermon on Matthew 15:21-28

When Jesus met the Canaanite woman who asked him to heal her daughter, and he called her a dog, she took his insult and turned it right back around. Even the dogs eat the crumbs, she said. “Ok, fine. I’m a dog, but I’m still a human being. You want to giveme crumbs? I’ll take crumbs.”

That revealed her human dignity far more than if she had shouted back at him. Dogs bark and bite. She did not. She talked calmly and reasoned with Jesus. In admitting to being a dog, she showed that she was far from actually being a dog. In agreeing that she was a dog, her humanity was revealed.

That’s like Jesus’ teaching about turning the other cheek and not resisting an evil person. (Matthew 5:39) She didn’t resist his evil sounding words. She turned her cheek, offered herself the same insult again and exposed the inhumanity of calling her a dog in the first place.

It really was brilliant, and I can see Jesus’ excitement. “Dude! She’s doing exactly what I taught!” I can also imagine the whole conversation between them being a way that Jesus took the opportunity to teach his disciples. “Here’s what turning the other cheek is all about, and here is what it means to treat people with dignity and respect.”

So, through all of that, her dignity was revealed and her suffering was relieved. Jesus showed that the way of God is not to some people worthy and some people unworthy. The way of God is not to practice religion and look good to others while oppressing workers, trampling the needy and bringing ruin to the poor of the land.

No, the way of God is to care for all and to reveal the dignity and relieve the suffering of people some may consider to be unworthy.

Revealing dignity and relieving suffering is our way of life at Lord of the Streets. That’s our mission. “Reveal dignity and relieve suffering, through ministries and relationships with people facing homelessness.” As I said last week, that’s the mission for everyone who chooses to be a member of Lord of the Streets (and for everyone who chooses to be a partner and supporter of Lord of the Streets). That’s our mission in each of our lives, and that’s our mission as a church community.

That mission is also how we can find faith and hope in today’s world. We strive to reveal one another’s dignity and to relieve one another’s suffering. That is the true life of our religion. Like Amos said, like Isaiah said, like Jesus said, revealing dignity
and relieving suffering is how we show that we truly love God, that we live our religion. Recognizing all people as worthy of honor and respect, love and belonging, that’s how we find hope and faith in today’s world.

The Rev. Brad Sullivan Lord of the Streets, Houston August 16, 2026 Proper 15, A Isaiah 56:1,6-8 Psalm 67 Matthew 15:21-28 I was on a radio ...

08/21/2026

Abiding Together in Transition

Our renovation is ongoing while our ministries continue.

Abiding Together in healing and peace, our mission is to relieve suffering and reveal dignity through ministries and relationships with people facing homelessness. We share that mission with those we serve, building one another up so that community and healing from trauma will help people get off the streets and stay housed.

Join in our mission through your support - www.lotshouston.org - "Donate Now".

08/14/2026

Open...With Renovation!

We are back to our full hours, Monday through Friday, 8:00 - Noon. The renovation is still going on, so we are operating out of a small part of our building, and it is working!

Mail service, Housing, Showers, Clothing, Vision Clinic, Bible Studies and Prayers - we're meeting with parishioners and clients out of our back parking lot for now.

We're also providing meals for folks who are coming for our services. Thank you to our staff and wonderful volunteers for their flexibility and dedication to your mission: relieving suffering and revealing dignity by rebuilding lives through ministries and relationships with people facing homelessness.

Brad+

08/07/2026

The Heart of Homelessness

D was overwhelmed and overcome by the stress and challenges of life, especially life on the streets, experiencing homelessness.

He knelt down outside the store he couldn’t afford to buy anything in and began weeping.

Strangers gathered around, people who are also experiencing homelessness, and they comforted him. Hands on shoulders, sitting with him, offering words of understanding and encouragement.

That was the hope and love he needed in that moment. Hope and healing given by the hearts and humanity of people experiencing homelessness.

D's story shares how together, we all find hope in the world.

07/31/2026

Sermon on Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 and 1 Kings 3:5-12:

It turns out, the kingdom of God isn’t about tricking God into giving us more stuff. The kingdom of God is about getting rid of the stuff that harms us in order to see and live the kingdom life all around us. The kingdom of God is hidden from us when we are stuck in our ways of anger or assuming it’s always someone else’s fault. The kingdom of God can be hidden by our past trauma, all the hurt done to us and all the hurt we’ve done because of it. The kingdom of God can be hidden by our lack of forgiveness, even of ourselves, stuck in the past of what we did and who we were.

With the treasure of the kingdom of God, though, we don’t have to be stuck as who we were. With God’s help in God’s kingdom, we can be who we want to be. Accepting God’s forgiveness, letting go of our shame and our self-hatred, that is part of the cost of the treasure of God’s kingdom, too.

Accepting God’s forgiveness and living a new life in God’s kingdom takes all we have and all we are, just like the treasure in the field. If we’re truly living God’s kingdom as the church, we find the cost is nothing compared to the life we find. We learn to live without anger, hatred, and fear as our constant companions. We learn to draw on God’s strength because our own is not sufficient. We learn to pray together and support one another. We learn that all the stuff life tried to sell us isn’t actually what we need after all. We learn that asking for wisdom to lead his people well, Solomon really did make a better ask that just wanting a bunch of money.

Give me a million dollars, or give me family and friends full of love and support? I’ll take the family and friends every time. I mean, to be clear, I’d love the million dollars, but if it’s between that and loving, supportive family and friends, I’ll take the family and friends. That’s life in the kingdom of God. Life where we see the love and community, the faith and the faithfulness, the hope and the peace that we’ve always wanted, and we’ll do anything to get it.

https://bradleysullivan.blogspot.com/2026/07/a-we-kingdom-not-i-kingdom.html