Ridgell's Originals

It starts about this time of year and continues right thru New Year's.  Our churches will be filled with talk of reaching the marginalized in our society.  We will talk about how that is where Jesus would be.  We will say that is the church we want to be.  A place for the poor, the lonely, the unchurched, the broken.

And we will roll out a number of quick, not too messy ways to do that.  Pray.  Give out turkeys to the poor.  Maybe even throw a meal in for the homeless.  Buy a few presents.  Give away socks down at a shelter.  Make a New Year's resolution to go somewhere for a week and come back changed.  Which is really odd because you would think it is their lives we might want to change.  Not ours.

But here's the deal.

Most of us don't mean it.

Because if we really start reaching out, we have to actually get our hands dirty.  Talking to bitter, lonely people.  Eating with them, not just fixing a meal.  Not flying home with a promise to see them next year, but driving away while they watch and wonder what we really wanted.

And what if we do reach out?  What if a single Mom shows up with her teenagers.  They can be loud and disruptive.  Don't know how to behave in church because they haven't been to church much.  Are we going to want them in our homes for small group?  Who is going to pay for their trip to Six Flags?  You really want them in your kid's cabin at camp?

What if I give out my cell number and they call needing something? 

These people are needy.  Physical and emotional needs.  And above all, needy for Jesus. 

So do you tell them the story of Jesus?  What if they hear us talk about the Good Samaritan?  What if they become part of our church family?  What if they tell their friends?

I have heard a lot of sermons over the years at my church about reaching the marginalized.  And some people take it to heart.  They are giving their lives to others.  Serving, teaching, and trying desperately to live in community.

And some complain about how they disrupt class.  And how our kids (whatever that means) don't get enough attention anymore.  And how we ought to have special classes for them. 

I don't know about your church or your city, but where I live there are lots of needy people.  And we talk about us, and them, and Jesus.  And not much changes.

But rather than be frustrated, I really want to thank those in my church who have poured the love of Jesus into our Bhutanese friends and family.  And those who work with our women's ministry to single Moms.  Those who use time, money, and energy to be Jesus.

You can talk about it all day long because you are doing it.

But for those that think talking and doing a few "arm's length away" projects is the same as loving like Jesus...

Maybe we ought to shut-up   oops, I mean be quiet.  At least until we are ready to put our lives where we say our faith is.

God, there are people all over for whom life has been hard.  Help us to see them and to invest in them.  Help us bring them into your Kingdom.  Because you love them.  Because your son died for them.  And truth be told,  because they are us.