I took a break from writing over my spring break, but I am happy to be back in action today. Mostly I used my break from work to relax and avoid the computer since I normally sit in front of one for 8 hours a day. I did take some opportunity for self-reflection over the break, and one of the more interesting of these opportunities arose during a phone conversation with a friend. My friend told me that every time he passes a homeless person on the streets of DC, he not only stops to give the person a few dollars, but he asks the person to share his/her story with him. My friend put it as him trying to get his money's worth, but I see it as him offering dignity to the overlooked and outcast members of society.
The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' --Matthew 25:40
When I was in college, I spent one of my spring breaks on a short-term missions trip to DC with the Intervarsity Christian Fellowship on my campus. We were told when we arrived not to give money to the homeless but that we could buy food for them and talk to them. In fact, one of our assignments was to talk to one homeless person and get his/her story, just like my friend told me that he does on his own. This was a huge step out of my comfort zone since I have always been one to avoid eye contact entirely with those asking for my money on the street. Still, to this day, I remember very clearly the face of the man that me and a couple of my friends talked to--even more clearly than I can remember the faces of some of those friends who were by my side when we talked to him.
At our cores, I think all of us want our stories to be heard. We want to be listened to without agenda or judgment. The least among us deserve the same dignity and respect as the grandest. As much as I would like to say that I changed my ways after my experience with that homeless man in college, I still look the other way. I'm scared to give money because I don't know what it will be used for and I'm too rushed to buy food on the spot. I have no problem collecting money or food with my church and giving at a distance, but my friend's story reminded me that sometimes I need to step out of my comfort zone and be with the least of our society the same way I would choose to be with those in my own socioeconomic sphere. Jesus did this all the time, and He has instructed us to be hands-on Christians just as He was.
Posted by Kim at April 10, 2007 09:27 AM