Wow. It's been three months since I have sat down to write on being brave.
I promise, I haven't abandoned our journey to bravery. I've just been busy.
Busy living it out.
I've been waiting for the perfect moment to tell you all about what has been going on and exactly how I've been brave but just a few minutes before I started this post, I felt like that would be inappropriate; almost like bragging. I don't want to do that so I'll just stick to one moment, one story that has really impacted me.
Earlier today, I was with my youth group in the middle of Moore Square in Raleigh. For those of you who don't know, Moore Square is basically where all the homeless people are supposed to go. We spent our day in the Outreach Center in Moore Square giving them bag lunches, toiletries, and hats and socks.
Going into this, I didn't know what to expect. I was excited but I had never done anything like this before but I was also nervous because I had never done anything like this before. I thought that we were going to show up, love on some people, and share Jesus with them through the items we were giving them.
Needless to say, it was not what I expected.
Within thirty minutes, we had gone through most of what we had brought and people were still pouring in. I was floored by the amount of people in a city so close to home that didn't really have anywhere they could call "home." I was absolutely shocked and heartbroken by the number of children that came through the line with their mommies and daddies. Absolutely heartbroken.
I still don't think I have the words to articulate the hurt, grief, and anger that I have that here, in American in 2015, there are so many people and children living in poverty.
Even though we were giving these people things they desperately needed, I still felt helpless. I wanted to help them and fix their situation so badly. I want to hug their necks and tell them how much Jesus loves them. I wanted to just stand there and cry.
Then this gentlemen walked in a went through the line. He was shaking everyone's hand and thanking each person as he went through for their generosity. When he got to where I was, he shook my hand and looked at me and said, "I know that you can't be thinking of yourself when you're helping someone else. Because y'all are emulating Him (pointing upwards) and I also want to be a reflection of Him, I'm going to bless someone else with what y'all have given me." He then picked up a hat, grinned and said, "I'm going to give this to someone who needs it more than I do."
Wow.
Someone who has so little was willing to give away his hat to someone who needed it more. This man only had what was in his hands and in his backpack and was willing to give away his hat.
This man may not know it, but he taught me so much about gratitude and a spirit of thankfulness. Part of being grateful and thankful is knowing that out of how much you do have, you do have something to give away. Even when we have very little, we still have something that we can give to someone else.
In just a few short hours, I fell in love with those people that we served and the hearts of the volunteers that are there serving regularly. But my heart was also broken for those people. I learned more from someone receiving our gifts than giving them away in the first place.
"Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,' but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?"
James 2:15-16 NIV
I promise, I haven't abandoned our journey to bravery. I've just been busy.
Busy living it out.
I've been waiting for the perfect moment to tell you all about what has been going on and exactly how I've been brave but just a few minutes before I started this post, I felt like that would be inappropriate; almost like bragging. I don't want to do that so I'll just stick to one moment, one story that has really impacted me.
Earlier today, I was with my youth group in the middle of Moore Square in Raleigh. For those of you who don't know, Moore Square is basically where all the homeless people are supposed to go. We spent our day in the Outreach Center in Moore Square giving them bag lunches, toiletries, and hats and socks.
Going into this, I didn't know what to expect. I was excited but I had never done anything like this before but I was also nervous because I had never done anything like this before. I thought that we were going to show up, love on some people, and share Jesus with them through the items we were giving them.
Needless to say, it was not what I expected.
Within thirty minutes, we had gone through most of what we had brought and people were still pouring in. I was floored by the amount of people in a city so close to home that didn't really have anywhere they could call "home." I was absolutely shocked and heartbroken by the number of children that came through the line with their mommies and daddies. Absolutely heartbroken.
I still don't think I have the words to articulate the hurt, grief, and anger that I have that here, in American in 2015, there are so many people and children living in poverty.
Even though we were giving these people things they desperately needed, I still felt helpless. I wanted to help them and fix their situation so badly. I want to hug their necks and tell them how much Jesus loves them. I wanted to just stand there and cry.
Then this gentlemen walked in a went through the line. He was shaking everyone's hand and thanking each person as he went through for their generosity. When he got to where I was, he shook my hand and looked at me and said, "I know that you can't be thinking of yourself when you're helping someone else. Because y'all are emulating Him (pointing upwards) and I also want to be a reflection of Him, I'm going to bless someone else with what y'all have given me." He then picked up a hat, grinned and said, "I'm going to give this to someone who needs it more than I do."
Wow.
Someone who has so little was willing to give away his hat to someone who needed it more. This man only had what was in his hands and in his backpack and was willing to give away his hat.
This man may not know it, but he taught me so much about gratitude and a spirit of thankfulness. Part of being grateful and thankful is knowing that out of how much you do have, you do have something to give away. Even when we have very little, we still have something that we can give to someone else.
In just a few short hours, I fell in love with those people that we served and the hearts of the volunteers that are there serving regularly. But my heart was also broken for those people. I learned more from someone receiving our gifts than giving them away in the first place.
"Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,' but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?"
James 2:15-16 NIV