Life Restored Church
Restoring life to the
homeless and hopeless
BY RICHARD ZOWIE
B E A CON W R I T E R
Growing up on San Antonio’s west
side near Buena Vista, Alex Fleming
remembers seeing many homeless
people living in camps near the bridge.
They braved the cold winters and the
Alamo City summer heat waves.
It didn’t take long for Alex to
develop an appreciation for having a
roof over his head and a burden for
those who did not.
Today, Pastor Alex, 41, leads Life
Restored Church, a ministry to the
homeless in his area.
He became a pastor after trusting in
Christ in 2003 and undergoing years of
discipleship.
Pastor Alex is the type who will
give a needy person the shirt off his
back, but wanted to do even more
when he learned that on a freezing
night in San Antonio, a homeless
person died from exposure.
“I told the church I felt the Holy
Spirit wanted me to do something,”
says Pastor Alex, who attended Lanier
High School and then later Fox Tech
High School.
Live on Facebook, Pastor Alex
walked outside his church and took his
shirt off, enduring the freezing weather
for 30 seconds. He challenged other
men to do the same.
“Imagine the homeless being out
there all day in those conditions,”
Pastor Alex says.
“That moment gave us media coverage
through the city and was a pivotal
moment in the ministry.” Stockpiles
came in: jackets, sleeping bags, and
other supplies
the homeless
needed.
“I asked Jesus
what we should
do with our
church building,”
Fleming says.
I asked Jesus
what we should
do with our
church building.
— Pastor Alex Fleming
The answer: transition from a
church that’s open twice on Sundays
and once on Wednesdays to one that’s
open 24/7. “The vision is we never close
and we always help. We are closer now.
We will get there very soon," he says.
Pastor Alex became a Christian
after his now-wife invited him to an
outreach event at Cornerstone church.
“I went and accepted Christ, out of
respect as a Catholic,” he says.
“Growing up as a Catholic, you respect
God. When you pass by a church with
a beer, you put it down, make the sign
of the cross and then pick it up again.”
After becoming a Christian, Pastor
Alex began to fall in love with Christ.
God gave him many mentors, including
Pastor Warren Beemer, Jacob Diaz, and
many others including his current one,
John Walters. The discipleship taught
him commitment, persistence, wisdom
and financial peace. It also fueled his
desire to change lives, and he remembered
the homeless and set out to
make a difference in their lives.
Life Restored Church, at 400 Arbor
Place near where Interstates 35 and 10
meet west of downtown, was birthed
out of his heart to change lives.
12 www.saBeacon.com May / June 2019