Atom“Strangers and Aliens”
“Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from sinful desires that wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans, that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day that he visits us.” 1 Peter 2:11-12
“You’re having coffee in this heat? That’s really strange…” “You came to Memphis in the heat of summer? From Minnesota? That’s really strange…” “Anybody know what those white folks are doing up on the roof down on Hollywood Avenue…in the heat? That’s really strange…”
Of course in coming to Memphis with the youth, we come to help…to redo roofs for people without the capacity to do so for themselves…to drywall, to paint, to repair, to clean up, to listen, to learn. We come because Jesus has directed us to pay attention to the needs of the poor and to “love as we have been loved.” But along the way…the “strangeness of our coming,” and the “strangeness” of taking time from our jobs and our families and “the lakes” makes people ask questions: “Why are you doing this? What brings you?” And we have opportunity to say, “Jesus.”
“Live such good lives among the [non-believers] that they may see your good deeds and glorify God…” It is the way of the Church – of the followers of Jesus – that deeds support and precede the words that we speak. Some historians even believe that what moved the early spread of Christianity across Europe was that the Christian community cared for the needs of others in a way that was not “normal.” Because of their hope in Christ and with little concern for their personal well-being, Christians stayed and cared for neighbors ravaged by plagues even while others left them for dead. Simple care-giving – food and water and cleanliness – brought recovery for many and such “strange” but amazing acts and brought many to consider and receive Christianity for
themselves.
So it is that SOS (Service Over Self) does its work among the very poor of Memphis and so it is that brokenness is repaired and so it is that God is glorified. We (the 21 youth and 4 adults who went to Memphis) were blessed to be a part of this adventure in Gospel living and our youth will be telling the story of their Memphis trip some time at a future worship.
Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your gifts that helped pay the way for this outreach to Memphis. Thank you for being a part of the “strangeness” of Minnesotans in the Tennessee
summer, drinking coffee and braving the heat and serving those whom God loves. It is strange that you would give of your own resources for such a thing…but by such strangeness is God
glorified and by such strangeness are the poor helped and by such strangeness do others come to hope in Christ!
Thankful for your partnership in the Good News,
Pastor Wade
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