I was talking to a friend recently about her working at the Dream Center down in L.A. for the summer, and it reminded me of an experience that has made an impact in my life even to this day. I have been to many parts of the world, from the slums of Mexico and remote villages in Guatemala, to the broken and battered Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina, to crowded downtown New York City, but there is only one place that I have ever been really scared, and that was on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles.

The first thing that I remember about entering the streets of Skid Row was going from complete silence inside to the sound of utter chaos on the streets just outside. There were people yelling, traffic roaring by, and just a deep sound of unrest. After the noise, the second thing that hit me were the sights. I was exposed to so many things in such a short amount of time. There was a young man that looked no older then me kneeling down in the corner shooting up on who knows what. That image is still implanted on my mind. That could have been me.

As I walked the streets we were broken up into teams to hand out food and talk to the homeless people. I did very little of both. There were three girls and two guys in my group and I felt that my role was to watch out for every single one of them. I was not comfortable at all being there because there were so many people down there and many if them drugged out or drunk. There was even a fight brewing down the street and even though we were down the street from it I was hearing people yell about a gun.

As all of this chaos was going on in my head all I could do was stare - overwhelmed. As I was staring off into the night a man came up to me and said, "a penny for your thoughts.” I looked down and saw a man who looked like Morgan Freedman standing next to me. He asked the question again, but I was still too overwhelmed to answer him, so I just stared. I could not put my thoughts to words at that point.

Then he said, “Look, this is the world without Christ.” As we looked down the street and saw the people fighting and swearing and people laying on the street homeless he talked to me about how, in a world without Christ, this is what happens. All I could do was stand there and agree with him. Then, just as fast as he had come he said, "have a good night" with a smile and he walked away down the street straight into the chaos.

I was left there alone, processing what had just happened.

The rest of that night went on - safe and uneventful - except for the man that was showing me how he fights, but that's a different story.

Why does that night stick out for me? For one thing I was in the most uncomfortable place I have even been. But another thing was that I had this powerful experience, with a man or angel I don't know, that helped me put a perspective on life.

We walk though life seeing the chaos of the world. The streets are filled with sick and beaten people. There are wars and riots on every street corner, and that is the world without Christ.

So let us hold onto Christ with all that we have. I am caught in complacency when it comes to how I value who Christ really is and what he has done for us. I am blessed beyond measure with the grace that he has shown me. I could easily have been that young man shooting up on the street joining in the chaos. But I'm not.

Instead, I'm the one on the outside trying to help people to see what they are missing. I want to give people hope. But I don't do it enough.

Each day is a gift, we as Christians are given the gift to spread hope to the chaos. Even though your world may look different it’s still the same, it’s a world without Christ. Jesus sacrificed too much for you and me to keep it hidden from those who so desperately need Him.