I had a conversation of sorts with a gentleman on Facebook
yesterday. Now, it’s not normally the
kind of conversation I have with folks on that social media site. We were talking about the homeless situation
in Wichita, in the context of what churches were doing to help mitigate that
issue. The man is not a Christian (he
said so), and was asking me what churches will open their doors TONIGHT (his
emphasis) to house the homeless. The way
he said it and the context he said it in led me to believe that he was trying
to make the point that churches do nothing to really help.
I responded that I wasn’t privy to the information he
wanted, and that he could contact Interfaith Ministries, who coordinates these
efforts, to find out. That wasn’t
evidently good enough for him, as he continued to belabor the point that I
wouldn’t tell him which churches would be open TONIGHT. I also asked him if he was homeless and
needed help, or if he wished to volunteer and be part of the solution. He didn’t respond to that.
Although I don’t know this man, the tone of his comments and
his line of thought was that he wants to blame the churches for having
buildings, but not opening them to the homeless. In other words, they do nothing to help. Now, I know I’m putting words into his mouth,
but I’ve had these conversations before, and they take a familiar pattern.
I’m tired of people who aren’t Christians, aren’t part of
any church organization, don’t volunteer, and have no compassion for the
down-and-out disrespecting churches and those who are members of them. These people don’t have a clue what REALLY
(emphasis mine) happens within a church body in terms of compassion, service,
and giving. Their “cure” for
homelessness, using this example, is for churches to unlock their doors and let
people in.
Well, let’s see. Some
churches (I use the term “church” loosely to mean, depending on the context,
the people, the building, or the organization) don’t have adequate bathroom and
shower facilities. Some don’t have
adequate volunteers to staff it all night.
Some don’t have the cots, blankets, etc.
And some don’t meet fire codes for housing people. Some have liability insurance issues that
preclude that kind of service. Others
may not have adequate kitchen facilities.
Buildings for churches generally aren’t built to house people, as in a
motel. They are built for meetings and
gatherings.
Churches DO purchase and maintain other buildings for the
purpose of housing the homeless.
Churches DO purchase motel room rental, serve food, and give away
clothing and blankets. Churches DO
volunteer to staff other homeless shelters.
Churches DO contribute money for their support. Churches DO pray for, weep for, and advocate
for the homeless. If churches wouldn’t
do what they do, this issue would be multiple times worse than it is.
People who would rather pick at, poke, and argue rather than
doing something aren’t on my favorite friends list. And people who haven’t a clue what the real
world is like when it comes to service, social issues, and those who are on the
front lines battling Satan every day aren’t there either.
I don’t want people to pat me or anyone else on the back for
a job well done. We don’t do this in
order to receive some kind of praise from others. We do this because we know we are the hands
and feet of Jesus Christ on earth. We do
this because we know it’s the right thing to do. We do this because we are in a battle with
the satanic enemy of God. We do this
because all people matter to God; and all people matter to us.
I’m tired of this.
