Why We Do What We Do

 Good morning and welcome to another Thursday Thought

 Before I get to my thought for this week, I want to acknowledge the tragic crash that happened last evening between a commercial flight originating in Wichita, and an Army helicopter. That crash happened in Washington, DC last evening.  Apparently, all 67 people on both aircraft have been lost.  If you know of someone who is hurting because of this accident, please be the hands and feet of Jesus as you serve and comfort them.

In the panoply of things I do in my work at the church lies the ministry of benevolence.  There are many ways that benevolent ministries can help both church members and those outside of the membership.  Some of the more common needs are food, clothing, transportation, housing, and help with bills.  We do get some of the more uncommon requests from time to time, such as for denture adhesive, eye glasses, and other such things.  But most of the time the requests wrap around the more common areas of benevolence.

We can’t do everything that comes our way.  We’re a relatively small congregation, so we’ve decided to concentrate our benevolent help on food, clothing, utility bill help, and help with fuel for transportation.  I also, as the benevolence minister, have a sort of cadre of social services people who work in the community non-profit sector who I trust to provide me with good information should they encounter someone with a need they can’t otherwise fill.  They will contact me and ask if the church could help their client with this or that.  We usually are able to oblige, and we trust their judgment.

One such client recently came to us by way of Suzie, one of my social services contacts.  Suzie asked me if there was any way we could provide a little food and some Tylenol and Ibuprofen for a woman she was helping.  The woman was temporarily staying in a hotel, had been in the hospital, was in recovery, and needed to stay in town for a short time.  She had no family or resources.  Nor did she have a way or the ability to go somewhere to get what she needed.

I immediately said we could help.  Suzie and I made plans to meet later that day.  I went to the pharmacy and bought a bottle each of generic Tylenol and Ibuprofen.  The total bill was about eight dollars.  We also provided a small box of food from our food stash that the woman could use in her room by using the microwave.  Suzie gathered the things together and delivered them to the woman.

Yesterday, I received an email from Suzie about the woman we helped.  Here is what it said:  My client wanted me to thank you on her behalf for helping her with the meds and the food items. She felt really lost and like nobody cares. I spoke to her this morning and she sounds way better than she did yesterday.

This is Jay again.  I am sometimes asked how many of those we help in the benevolence ministry attend services with us or want a Bible study.  Their thought is that the benevolence ministry needs to be an evangelistic ministry…and that if it is not getting evangelistic results, maybe we need to be doing something else with those resources.

Very seldom does someone attend services because of our benevolence.  Even less often does someone wish to study the Bible or discuss spiritual matters.  Most of the time we don’t even receive a written thank you like I did with this woman, given through Suzie her social worker.  One might wonder why that is.  I think I have an answer for that.

By far most of those we serve are not thinking so much about what we might call “spiritual things” as they are thinking of ways to survive the day.  That survival could include finding a relatively safe place to sleep that evening, feeding their kids for the first time in two days, keeping the electric, gas, or water utility collections department at bay for another few days, or finding a way to get to work that evening so they don’t lose the job they have.

Most of the time, these people are struggling to survive…and I mean that in a truly literal sense.  They are expending an incredible amount of time and energy to just be able to live, let alone have the time and energy to have a Bible study or clean up for church services.  I think you would agree that if you had no electricity, an empty gas tank, and had just been served an eviction notice from the squalid apartment you were in, you wouldn’t have a lot of desire to sit down and have a Bible study either.

What I do find with many of those we help is just what this woman articulated to Suzie.  These people feel like they are all alone…lost…and that no one really cares about them.  Often they don’t have family.  They often feel like government agencies put more roadblocks in their way to obtaining resources than work with them to provide the help they need.  They tell me that many agencies don’t want to listen to them, act like they don’t have time for them, or reduce their humanity to a number or an appointment.

Being in need of services is all too often a dehumanizing, degrading, and embarrassing experience.  At RiverWalk, we work to make that experience non-judgmental and as helpful as possible.  With few exceptions, we insist that we personally meet the one in need.  We sit down with them, visit with them, hear their story, try to make them more at ease, and give them the dignity and respect they deserve.  We may or may not be able to help them with their need.  But hopefully, we can leave them with a good feeling toward the church and let them know that we care and are hearing them.

I have long ago lost count of the times I have heard someone thank me for just taking the time to listen, even though we couldn’t help with their need.  In fact, that very thing happened again just yesterday.  I’ve also long ago lost count of the number of times we have been able to help by at least temporarily removing the threat of disconnection of utility services and seeing the obvious look of relief wash over someone’s face, usually a woman, and sometimes accompanied by a sobbing breakdown here in the office.

The answer to why we do benevolence is what I’ve just said.  We provide dignity, respect, a non-judgmental listening ear, and sometimes we can provide a sense of relief, knowing that at least for now, the collections and disconnections people have been kept away.  That, in my view, makes what we do here truly a ministry…a ministry to the hurting, marginalized, and forgotten.  It’s a ministry that’s well worth the time, effort, and resources…don’t you think?

 Blessings,

Grace and Peace

 Good morning, and welcome.

 Earlier this week, I came into the office and found a short letter on my desk from Larry.  Larry was one of our church Elders, and had just lost his wife of many years a few weeks before.  The letter was his official, if you will, letter of resignation from the Eldership at RiverWalk church.

 Larry is an older gentleman, and has served with honor and wisdom for many years.  His resignation was not unexpected, because an Elder serves best when his spouse…his companion…his wife…is able to support and sustain him in his work.  Sometimes, a person just knows when the time is right to make a change and move on.  This, evidently, was the right time for Larry.  And we honor his decision.

 To serve as an Elder in our faith tradition is much more than having a meeting once a month or so and making a few decisions regarding building repair or some other administrative thing.  In fact, Elders in our tradition would much rather not have to do much of that kind of thing, and leave those decisions to others who may well be more suited to making them.

 The New Testament likens the work of and Elder to being a shepherd to a flock of sheep.  If you know anything about shepherding sheep, you know that the shepherd cares for his or her flock in many ways.  Finding water and food, protection from predators, giving shelter when needed, and many other aspects of caring for sheep are part of the shepherd’s work.

 Similarly, the Elder shepherds those members of the congregation he leads.  He cares for, loves, guards, teaches, and otherwise fosters and enables spiritual growth in the lives of those people of the congregation.  Paul the great apostle of the New Testament tells the Elders of the Ephesus church to “Guard yourselves and God’s people.  Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church, purchased with his own blood—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders.”

 The charge to love and care for the church is, or should be, the primary focus of an Elder.  Larry was always not only aware of that charge, but fulfilled it lovingly, joyfully, and with wisdom and grace.

 In his letter of resignation to be given to the congregation, he spoke of service.  The idea of service is one that is embedded into the fabric of what it means to be a Christian…a follower of Jesus Christ.  Whether that service is in or for the church, or in service to one’s fellow man, a life of service is a noble calling.  Larry’s words are meant specifically, I think, in regard to service in and for the church…that body of believers who meet together from time to time in worship and fellowship with God and with one-another.

 I’ve made some minor edits to make the text flow a little better for this venue, but have not changed his message in any way.  Listen to what he had to say to us all in the RiverWalk congregation.

 My last thoughts that I want to leave you with, is about service.  Why serve?  I know that some time in the future there is going to be an opportunity for you to serve the church in some compacity.  I'm not telling you what you need to do (you know your situation better than anyone else) but you need to share some of your life experiences in service to the church.  It is pretty easy to stay hidden and convince yourself that you aren't able to do anything, there are others more qualified, or there are more important things that require your attention.

 And the truth be told, all those things are probably true.  Here is what I know though.  Riverwalk has faith in you.  That faith is backed up with God's faith and promise.  "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me". (Phil 4:13)  l like the way one commentator explains it that Christ is there to help us endure hardships, and it's about perseverance and not personal triumphs.  And I believe Christ does enable us.

 If you consider yourself a nobody, good.  God likes nobodies.  Nobodies are the ones that step out on faith in God and not themselves.  Just consider the apostles.  God has a purpose for you too.  Consider allowing Him to use you for His purposes.  He has done that with a long list of saints which have passed through the history of this church, and I can testify he has amazed me with how he has used this nobody.

 Finally, I look forward to see what God has planned for you and what He can accomplish in your lives, and this church, and His kingdom by you being a nobody.  Thank you again for being that very special and loving church  Grace and peace to you.

 And grace and peace be unto you, Larry.

 Blessings.

 Good morning, and welcome.

 Today, I could have utilized the services of Microsoft Co-pilot in drafting this Thursday Thought, as it was loaded as an update to my Office suite.  However, I politely declined and disabled the app.  I’m not fearful of A I, but have been doing rather well, I think, writing without it’s “helpful” suggestions all these years.  Although I know I use it by default in other ways…the search engines being one of those ways…I don’t see the need to begin using it now in a writing capacity.  So, what you will hear today…and going forward…will be my own words.

 Bob Dylan wrote the song, “The Times…They Are a Changin’” in 1963.  It was released on an album in 1965.  One of the lines in the song is, “You better start swimmin’ or you’ll sink like a stone, for the times, they are a changin.”  Sometimes I get that feeling, especially with all of the “new stuff” that comes out about every ten minutes or so.  The various manifestations of artificial intelligence are just one of those things.  And, of course, you can think of many other changes and “new stuff” that have come about in the last while.  I sometimes wonder if the human race is going to run away with itself some time.

 However, even in these times of incredible change, there are those things which tend to bring us back to a reality that is more grounded…more gentle on the spirit.  Think of the seasons of the year.  Yes, they change, at least in our part of the world.  But the change comes on gradually, almost imperceptibly.  They give us time to adjust from spring to summer, fall to winter.  And there’s always the promise of new spring growth, summer produce from the garden, the fall colors, and the winter snows.

 Then there are those things which indeed change, but do so over a period of time that makes that change invisible to us.  I’m thinking of things such as the constellations in the heavens, which, the astronomers tell us, are changing shape due to the motion of the stars that make them up.  Yet we cannot in our lifetimes discern that change in shape.  To us, they are a constant…something fixed.  Something that has been a part of human history for eons.

 In speaking to Job in the book in the Old Testament by that same name, God asks Job if he can control the stars.  He specifically mentions two well-known constellations…The Pleiades and Orion.  “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades? Can you loosen Orion’s belt?” God asks.  And, of course, Job has no response at that time.

 I’ve said before that one of Archie Bunker’s lines in the old “All In the Family” TV series was, “I like change better when everything stays the same.”  But for better or worse, change is inevitable.  We may not see it.  We may not perceive it.  We may think that we’ll just go on with life and living like we always have.  And there are times when we can “disable” some change like I disabled Microsoft Co-Pilot.  My disabling the app, however, doesn’t mean that it no longer exists.  It’s still there on my laptop.  And it, along with other artificial intelligence applications, are spreading like a virus…pardon the expression…into the world scene regardless of whether I use it to help me write or not.

 I’ll close this by going to a place where I’ve gone before…God and his unchangeable nature.  “I am the Lord,” God says.  “I do not change.”  The Psalmist says, “You remain the same; your years will never end.”  In the face of change…whether that change is swift and easily seen, or whether that change takes thousands of years to detect, God remains the same.

 If you’re anything like Archie Bunker, you’ll appreciate the unchanging nature of God.  You can rest assured that what He is, says, and does today has always been, and will always continue to be…the same.  And that means that his promises, his love, his justice, his mercy, his kindness, his purity, his goodness…always have, are, and will be…the same.

 May God bless you with his unfailing and unchanging love in this time of sometimes radical and incredible change.

Outside Beauty

 Good afternoon, and welcome to this, a Friday edition of the Thursday Thought.  That may at first sound a little strange, but I didn't have a chance to write or record the thought yesterday...so am doing it now.

This week was the week of the big snow in South Central Kansas.  Last weekend we received over three and a half inches of ice and snow.  Yesterday, Thursday, we received another six inches or so of the white stuff.  It's like another world out there.  Sights like this in the Wichita area are all too infrequent, although I'm sure there are many who would rather not have to deal with any of it.

We lost power at our place last Sunday morning, but only for an hour and a half or so.  Others weren't so fortunate and were off for several hours.  We were otherwise fine and comfortable just being in the house for the weekend, and for part of the day on Monday.  I did venture out to work Monday if for no other reason than to check up on the church building to be sure all was OK there, as we didn't have services Sunday and the heat was on, but was set minimally at 50 degrees.  It was cold and windy that weekend, and I wanted to be sure things were OK.  They were.

I stayed for a couple of hours and did some work in the office.  In that time there were two unhoused gentlemen who came to the door at different times.  One who we know as Rocky, needed a few snack items and to warm up a bit.  I let him in, got him some snacks, asked if he needed anything else, and he went on his way.  He had what seemed to be a good amount of clothing and coats on, and looked to be OK.

The second gentleman who I didn't know also needed some snacks.  Normally, we don't hand out food from the office door, but because of the weather and my not thinking to put food into the Paxton's Blessing Box outside the door, I got him some things as well.  I also invited him in to warm up a bit.  He too seemed to be in good shape and had good clothing.

I have a background in emergency health care and did quick assessments of each of them while they were inside because of the cold.  I didn't want to send them back out if they were suffering from the cold...but each of them seemed OK and denied having any issues with the cold when I asked.

After they left, I put food into the blessing box along with a pair of gloves and some hand warmers and water.  That was gone before long, so I refilled it before I left the office.  Much of the time, the things we put into the box don't stay there very long.  They generally are taken by the next unhoused person who comes by and looks into the box.  We can't obviously fill the box except during times when we are at the office, so it goes empty much of the time.  Our office hours are approximately 9am to 4pm five days a week, but can vary depending on other responsibilities we may have away from the office, the weather conditions, or some other reason.

Putting a lot of food in the box doesn't help because the next person who comes by will empty the box whether it has a lot or a little in it.  I get it because their next meal may well not be assured, so they take what is there in order to have maybe two or three meals ahead.  However, we normally put only enough in there for just one meal so more can take advantage of the limited amount of food we have available to give.

The Thursday snowfall was much different from the one last weekend.  The Thursday snow was wetter and came down with virtually no wind to blow it around.  Everything is covered, and the temperatures outside today are at about freezing, so kids can go outside in the sun and somewhat milder air and enjoy the snow.  It is these kinds of snow days that don't come often enough.  Much of our winter snows are accompanied by ice, or wind, or bitter cold.  This one, however, was just right.

Not much else is going on at the Plank home this week.  My thoughts are centered on nature, the beauty of the snows and the pleasure of watching the various kinds of birds attack the bird feeder on our deck.  The occasional squirrel manages to sneak some sunflower seeds and peanuts as well.  Lots of juncos, cardinals, bluejays, and several sparrows, usually the harris sparrows, along with titmice, black capped chickadees, sometimes a red bellied woodpecker, and even once in awhile I think I've seen a house finch or two.  There are also a few doves that come in, chase everyone else away, and just seem to park there eating.  I let them stay awhile, then chase them away to give others a chance.

May your weekend be safe, pleasant, and enjoyable, and above all, may we all glorify God and praise Him for the beauty that is ours to behold outside.

 

Blessings.