On the bustling streets of Chicago, a pastoral student known simply as “J” has spent the past four years approaching complete strangers with an unexpected message of love and hope. His mission is simple yet profound: to remind people during their everyday routines that they matter.
The aspiring pastor has made it his practice to walk up to individuals in grocery stores and on city sidewalks, delivering a consistent and heartfelt message. “If nobody else tells you today I love you. You stay in the fight,” he tells them, offering words of encouragement to those who may desperately need to hear them.
A ministry of humility
J uses a camera mounted in his glasses to document these encounters, but deliberately keeps his own face hidden from view. This choice stems from a daily prayer he offers to God: “don’t let people see me let them see You that dwells in me don’t let them see me let me decrease.” This intentional anonymity reflects his desire to point others toward God rather than drawing attention to himself.
With assistance from his college-aged son, J’s videos have found their way online, attracting thousands of followers who track his ongoing mission. Despite the growing audience and repeated requests from platforms like TikTok and Instagram to monetize his content, he consistently declines. He clicks the exit button on these offers daily, understanding that accepting payment would undermine his purpose.
Encountering real pain
During one particularly moving interaction at a Walmart in Decatur, J approached a father purchasing supplies for a five-year-old child. After delivering his customary message of love, the man shared devastating news: he had just received a cancer diagnosis. When the man began to cry, J stopped recording and offered words of faith: “God got you, God got you, He brought you through it He’ll bring you through it.”
Born from personal tragedy
J’s commitment to spreading love stems from his own experiences with profound loss and hardship. He relocated from Kansas City to Chicago two years ago to be closer to his children. Of his ten children, nine are living—he lost his oldest son in 2016. He has also endured the death of his children’s mother, lost friends, and battles PTSD and anxiety daily. His health struggles include a five-day stay in intensive care due to congestive heart failure.
Rather than allowing these tragedies to defeat him, J transformed his pain into purpose. His suffering led him to consider what others might be enduring and inspired him to become a source of light in their lives.
A lesson in grassroots faith
J’s approach demonstrates that sharing faith doesn’t require formal structures or traditional settings. His street ministry operates without a building, organization, or even formal sermons. Instead, he relies on genuine, heart-to-heart connection and simple words spoken with sincerity. His example shows that ministering to others requires only compassion for their struggles and a commitment to serving God.
