Think About That

 Good morning.

 It is the unusual day at work when I do NOT have a request to be seen for some kind of benevolence.  Those requests come usually on the phone, but sometimes the one needing help comes to the building and asks to meet with me for a few minutes.  As you may already know, I work with the benevolence ministry at the church, among other responsibilities.

Sometimes, we are able to provide some kind of help for a need.  Other times the need is beyond what we are able to work with.  Or it could be that what we have to offer is not what they have need of.

Regardless of whether we are able to help or not, I always try to engage in conversation, asking about their current situation.  I try to keep the conversation centered on them, encouraging them to talk about both the difficulties they face as well as some of the better parts of their daily lives.  Most people usually respond positively to the conversation, and several have thanked me for just listening, even when we couldn’t help them in a material way.

One commonality I have noticed over the years in the lives of these people is the incredible difficulties they have in just getting through the day or week.  Living on the edge requires hard, difficult work.  It is physically, mentally, and emotionally draining.  It is complicated.  It is demanding.

Accessing whatever services that may be provided can be a mountain to climb rather than a molehill to step over.  They have to fill out forms…mostly online now…ask for an appointment time with a caseworker…and somehow find transportation to and from the appointment.  They may eventually be approved.  They may be denied.  They may need additional information that they don’t have readily available…a birth certificate, a government ID or the like.

They are put on waiting lists.  They stand in lines.  They have multiple needs and multiple issues to address.  They may have children who need constant supervision.  They need to find food, deal with a landlord who won’t fix the plumbing, enroll the kids in school and somehow find clothing and school supplies for them, obtain diapers and formula for an infant, and not miss a court date on the protection from abuse order they want issued to an ex.  And in the middle of all of this, they are expected to stand in line, spend hours on the hold on the phone, and navigate the sometimes incredibly complex world of government and even non-profit services.  I am amazed at the resilience of many of these people.

I was recently visiting with an immigration attorney in Wichita.  I asked her if she could quantify in just a few words the state and status of immigration in the nation.  She looked at me for a second, then she said three words.  “Confusing,” “complicated,” and “exhausting.”  I have no idea what it is like to work with immigration issues and the fact that the law is in many respects anything but clear and concise, but I do know that besides those descriptors, if someone uses legal services, it’s also expensive.  My guess is that relatively few who need an attorney can actually afford one at the standard rates.

If  you are living a life of relative comfort…if you don’t have to stand in line, waiting to see a caseworker…if you have food in your house adequate for your needs…if you have decent transportation, a roof over your head that doesn’t leak, Tylenol on the shelf for your minor aches and pains, plumbing that works as it should, transportation to get you to the doctor and supermarket, and clothing that is clean, you need to drop to your knees and thank God for the blessings.

And as soon as you get off your knees, determine what you may be able to do to make someone else’s day a little better.  What you may be able to do to make your corner of the world a little brighter and pleasant.  What you may be able to do to ease someone’s burden just a little.

And don’t let a judgmental attitude take over your thoughts when you see someone who is unhoused, someone driving an old, beat-up car, an older man on a bicycle with a wagon attached that has all of his worldly belongings on it, or someone who is using a food card to get groceries.  There but for the grace of God, that person could be you.

And understand that word “grace.”  A better way to say that sentence would be, “There but for the totally free and unmerited favor of God, favor that has nothing to do with who you are or what you’ve done, but rather was given you by God’s choice and pleasure, that person could be you.”  In other words, you did nothing…you could do nothing…to earn or deserve God’s favor.  You’re no more or no less “special” in God’s eyes than the homeless woman on the street corner who is asking for your loose change.

Think about that this week.

Blessings,