Day one of service today. We spent the morning listening to a rep from Seven Bridges talk about their ministry. They have a heart for the homeless and they are unapologetic about their passion and Christian focus.
It got me thinking about names. We call ourselves Christian, but do we live up to our namesake?
No judging, but do we? Chew on that while we make sandwiches.
545 bologna sandwiches to be exact.
At lunch, we headed out on the Bridges Route. We stopped and offered sandwiches to people at several stops. The process is clear: you ask their name, you offer words of encouragement, you ask what you can pray with them for and then you pray with them.
At first, it is terrifying. That intimate of a contact. That blatantly Christian.
Again, how are we living up to our namesake?
I honestly don't have an answer. I do know that meeting JJ, Ariel, Felicia, and Kayleeyah has made me see homelessness, poverty and human trafficking in a way I haven't before.
I also got to see a space below a bridge where two people, Tina and Anderson, live. They weren't home. Yes, I know it's a bit surreal to call the 6 by 7 ledge under a bridge home, but that is what it is to them so I'll honor their choice. Since they weren't home, we left a couple sandwiches for them and prayed for them. It felt both inadequate and exactly right all at the same time.
What does it mean to carry the name Christian? Is it more than platitudes and Sunday carry-ins? Does it require more than intermittent attemps at spirituality?
What of his name will I bring back to Wichita in the names of Anderson, Tina, Kayleeyah, Falucia, Ariel and JJ?
I'm still wrapping brain around it--I think I'll be doing a lot of that this week.
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