Sunday, June 9, 2013

Realities of Urban Work




This past week I had the privilege of taking a few of the young men I mentor to Kids Across America summer kamp for a week of sports, adventures and learning about Jesus Christ. They were truly blessed by the counselors and staff that poured into them encouragement and love. 

One of our young men stated his desire to not only go back to kamp next year, but to continue to go until he is old enough to become a counselor and kaleo himself. He was deeply impacted by the week and has a vision for his future. 

When I dropped him off at his home after returning from kamp he paused in front of his house and tears came to his eyes. He looked at me and told me he wished he could come live with me. 

As I carried his bags into his house I was reminded of the serious challenges he faces on a daily basis and the nagging influence of a ghetto nihilistic culture in which he finds himself. There were beer cans spread throughout the home, cigarette butts and nothing seemed to be in order. 

The environment was toxic and my spirit cringed as I took in the scene. His mother’s live in boyfriend was in the back using the computer to produce music. This was supposed to be his present after returning home from kamp but I doubt he will even get the chance to use it for educational growth. More recently his mom intercepted a gift card we had given him for clothes for kamp. 

The situations we face in urban ministry are downright overwhelming and the injustices these kids experience on a daily basis mar and hinder their growth and development. I found myself in utter despair on the way home but remembered something. 

HOPE. 

Hope that what we are doing through our mentoring program and church plant are going to make a difference not only in his life and many other children, but the lives of the parents as they see something different from their children. Hope that the gospel can breakthrough even in the most difficult of circumstances. Hope that he will not be a statistic or get a girl pregnant before marriage. 

All we can do is seek justice and offer hope through the gospel. We cannot produce or manufacture results. We simply sow and show the gospel through our lives, both actions and words. We continually point them to Christ as the One who suffered unbelievable poverty so we can be unbelievably rich. 

It is my hope that Christ will break into his entire family but the harsh reality is that urban work is not for the faint in heart. One must constantly believe and trust that Jesus can and will change the hearts of men. I hold dear this verse in my heart at all times and I commend it to every worker. 

“Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord knowing that your labor in Him is not in vain”.