There’s a song on a playlist that I listen to when I run. It’s a popular song by Matthew West called Something to Say. The chorus goes like this:
You got something to say
If you're livin', if you're breathin'
You got something to say
And you know if your heart is beatin'
You got something to say
And no one can say it like you do
God is love and love speaks through
You got it, you got it
You got something to say
And there’s one other little piece of the lyric that always catches my ear:
Listen up, I got a question here
Would anybody miss you if you disappeared?
Well your life is the song that you sing
And the whole wide world is listening
So that’s the deal. The whole world is listening to our song. And we’ve all got something to say. The question is, how do we say it?
About 100 weeks ago, I started an attempt to capture what happens, through my eyes, on a weekly basis on our downtown corner. So this marks my 100th blog. To those of you that have read them all, I am so sorry to have put you through it all! :) The nice thing is I haven't had to count them all or I never would have known this was 100. The sites I post on keep track of such things, so that's how I knew. It's not the number that is significant. And it's definitely not my goofy, rambling thoughts that are significant. What is important to me in all of this is that it gives me occasion to keep track of some of the amazing things God is doing and has done on a downtown street corner here in this great city of Omaha.
Robin and I (and now Christian and Britta) have been attending for some time, a weekly community/bible study/small group called The Vine. At last Tuesday's gathering, we were discussing Omaha, our community. At one point the discussion centered on what is right and what is wrong in our community. One of the fellows in our group, who has very strong feelings about some of these things, went off on a bit of a run about what is wrong in our community. And there is plenty to go off on in that regard, as I'm sure there is in most communities. But there are also a lot of good things happening. As another fellow reminded me the following morning. In a phone call and with a heavy heart, our friend reminded me that God is indeed doing some rather amazing things in this city. Really amazing things. I see them weekly on our corner. And it should be noted that Robin and I met both of the individuals I just referred to on that very corner where we serve weekly. Both were homeless when we met them. Neither is now. Their circumstances have nothing to do with us. But here's the simple fact of the matter - both have their own place now and we pick both of them up on a regular basis and attend a weekly community gathering where we can discuss the relevant issues in our lives and how God is working in those situations. And it is such a diverse group. From, literally, guys living in tents or under bridges, to us, living in our comfortable, suburban home. And somehow, we all have the same issues. Strange how that happens.
It's amazing to me that a simple pot of soup and a desire to serve has led us to this point in time. That we met some fellows in a place in the park, known affectionately to the guys in the park as The Office. And that we were accepted into The Office. And for the most part, they've accepted us for who we are. And we, them. We've seen good friends leave us way too early. But we've seen others completely understand why we come. I've been able to write about my night at a local homeless shelter. I've been able to write of various conversations that have taken place on that corner. Of life changing situations that bring a person to homelessness. O out of it. I've been able to write of our own family situations. Good and bad. I've been blessed to be able to keep a running weekly journal of our activities downtown and it surprises me sometimes to go back and read some of them. I was amazed at how a simple blog, my crazy, sometimes incoherent thoughts, manifested into a place for a family to come and grieve and celebrate at the same time. I've been able to thank certain people for their faith and commitment. I've been awed by how God works in some of the smallest details. Here's a for instance. Two weeks ago, a fellow who volunteers on a fairly regular basis, shows up with several large bags of clothing, etc. That happens all the time. But what made one of these bags significant is how the contents of the bag brightened the eyes of a child. We don't see that many kids, but we do see them occasionally. This particular day, a young girl showed up with her mom and a person we later found to be a case worker. Or at least that's the story we got. The little girl was probably 10 or so and had no boots on, but rather what looked like a pair of summer shoes. This was a day where boots were definitely in order. As I struggled at the back to the trailer to distribute hats, gloves, socks, etc., Robin approaches me and lets me know of this child's need. So I look in one of the bags, having no idea what was in it, and of course there was a pair of boots that were her size. I cannot tell you how many times things like that happen. And there were stuffed animals in the bag also. I pulled one out, in the middle of all the seeming chaos that was happening around me and this little girl’s eyes absolutely lit up. Seems like that's how God works sometimes. In the smallest of details and there is just no way I could ever keep track of every single thing that happens down there each week. I try, but it would take a day of writing to do that. Just another example of a simple act that may someday have an impact for Christ. Maybe.
I'd like to take a minute here to mention someone that I don’t do nearly often enough. My beautiful wife, Robin. She'd deflect it, but without her, this thing wouldn't look nearly the same, if it even existed at all. Her compassion is fairly limitless. I've read and heard things lately where people seem to want to give me a lot of credit for what we do. First and foremost, this is obviously God's ministry. We are simply the lucky ones who show up. But Robin is the one that keeps me in check and keeps this thing humming. When I want to cut a corner here or there, I get a gentle nudge from the Holy Spirit, who sometimes looks amazingly like Robin. I hate when that happens, but I also love it because it keeps me grounded. And she is so good at what she does. God definitely knew what He was doing when He chose her. She demands excellence in all areas. And I've learned so much from her. I thank God daily for marrying up. Man does He know how to pick 'em! And to think she was once my cocktail waitress and I was playing in the band! I just have to laugh at the thought of where we were and how far He's carried us. Amazing!
So 100 blogs later, it’s a blog about blogs. And about how God is working in our community. And how I'm so amazingly blessed to be a small part of it. And how we all have something to say. The question remains…how will we say it?
And one last thing. A quick update. I mentioned a few weeks ago that one of our friends was in the park with what looked like frostbite on her legs. I saw her today and her legs looked better. She even raised her pant leg and showed me. Still looked a little rough, but better. Thank God.
Peace, have a great and blessed week and make a difference.
…it matters to that one… :)
You got something to say
If you're livin', if you're breathin'
You got something to say
And you know if your heart is beatin'
You got something to say
And no one can say it like you do
God is love and love speaks through
You got it, you got it
You got something to say
And there’s one other little piece of the lyric that always catches my ear:
Listen up, I got a question here
Would anybody miss you if you disappeared?
Well your life is the song that you sing
And the whole wide world is listening
So that’s the deal. The whole world is listening to our song. And we’ve all got something to say. The question is, how do we say it?
About 100 weeks ago, I started an attempt to capture what happens, through my eyes, on a weekly basis on our downtown corner. So this marks my 100th blog. To those of you that have read them all, I am so sorry to have put you through it all! :) The nice thing is I haven't had to count them all or I never would have known this was 100. The sites I post on keep track of such things, so that's how I knew. It's not the number that is significant. And it's definitely not my goofy, rambling thoughts that are significant. What is important to me in all of this is that it gives me occasion to keep track of some of the amazing things God is doing and has done on a downtown street corner here in this great city of Omaha.
Robin and I (and now Christian and Britta) have been attending for some time, a weekly community/bible study/small group called The Vine. At last Tuesday's gathering, we were discussing Omaha, our community. At one point the discussion centered on what is right and what is wrong in our community. One of the fellows in our group, who has very strong feelings about some of these things, went off on a bit of a run about what is wrong in our community. And there is plenty to go off on in that regard, as I'm sure there is in most communities. But there are also a lot of good things happening. As another fellow reminded me the following morning. In a phone call and with a heavy heart, our friend reminded me that God is indeed doing some rather amazing things in this city. Really amazing things. I see them weekly on our corner. And it should be noted that Robin and I met both of the individuals I just referred to on that very corner where we serve weekly. Both were homeless when we met them. Neither is now. Their circumstances have nothing to do with us. But here's the simple fact of the matter - both have their own place now and we pick both of them up on a regular basis and attend a weekly community gathering where we can discuss the relevant issues in our lives and how God is working in those situations. And it is such a diverse group. From, literally, guys living in tents or under bridges, to us, living in our comfortable, suburban home. And somehow, we all have the same issues. Strange how that happens.
It's amazing to me that a simple pot of soup and a desire to serve has led us to this point in time. That we met some fellows in a place in the park, known affectionately to the guys in the park as The Office. And that we were accepted into The Office. And for the most part, they've accepted us for who we are. And we, them. We've seen good friends leave us way too early. But we've seen others completely understand why we come. I've been able to write about my night at a local homeless shelter. I've been able to write of various conversations that have taken place on that corner. Of life changing situations that bring a person to homelessness. O out of it. I've been able to write of our own family situations. Good and bad. I've been blessed to be able to keep a running weekly journal of our activities downtown and it surprises me sometimes to go back and read some of them. I was amazed at how a simple blog, my crazy, sometimes incoherent thoughts, manifested into a place for a family to come and grieve and celebrate at the same time. I've been able to thank certain people for their faith and commitment. I've been awed by how God works in some of the smallest details. Here's a for instance. Two weeks ago, a fellow who volunteers on a fairly regular basis, shows up with several large bags of clothing, etc. That happens all the time. But what made one of these bags significant is how the contents of the bag brightened the eyes of a child. We don't see that many kids, but we do see them occasionally. This particular day, a young girl showed up with her mom and a person we later found to be a case worker. Or at least that's the story we got. The little girl was probably 10 or so and had no boots on, but rather what looked like a pair of summer shoes. This was a day where boots were definitely in order. As I struggled at the back to the trailer to distribute hats, gloves, socks, etc., Robin approaches me and lets me know of this child's need. So I look in one of the bags, having no idea what was in it, and of course there was a pair of boots that were her size. I cannot tell you how many times things like that happen. And there were stuffed animals in the bag also. I pulled one out, in the middle of all the seeming chaos that was happening around me and this little girl’s eyes absolutely lit up. Seems like that's how God works sometimes. In the smallest of details and there is just no way I could ever keep track of every single thing that happens down there each week. I try, but it would take a day of writing to do that. Just another example of a simple act that may someday have an impact for Christ. Maybe.
I'd like to take a minute here to mention someone that I don’t do nearly often enough. My beautiful wife, Robin. She'd deflect it, but without her, this thing wouldn't look nearly the same, if it even existed at all. Her compassion is fairly limitless. I've read and heard things lately where people seem to want to give me a lot of credit for what we do. First and foremost, this is obviously God's ministry. We are simply the lucky ones who show up. But Robin is the one that keeps me in check and keeps this thing humming. When I want to cut a corner here or there, I get a gentle nudge from the Holy Spirit, who sometimes looks amazingly like Robin. I hate when that happens, but I also love it because it keeps me grounded. And she is so good at what she does. God definitely knew what He was doing when He chose her. She demands excellence in all areas. And I've learned so much from her. I thank God daily for marrying up. Man does He know how to pick 'em! And to think she was once my cocktail waitress and I was playing in the band! I just have to laugh at the thought of where we were and how far He's carried us. Amazing!
So 100 blogs later, it’s a blog about blogs. And about how God is working in our community. And how I'm so amazingly blessed to be a small part of it. And how we all have something to say. The question remains…how will we say it?
And one last thing. A quick update. I mentioned a few weeks ago that one of our friends was in the park with what looked like frostbite on her legs. I saw her today and her legs looked better. She even raised her pant leg and showed me. Still looked a little rough, but better. Thank God.
Peace, have a great and blessed week and make a difference.
…it matters to that one… :)
No comments:
Post a Comment