The past month has been…well…interesting, to say the least. For the past nine months, circumstances at my placement had been pushing me and challenging me. A few weeks ago, a specific incident took place at the school where I worked, which opened my eyes to the possibility that maybe God had been pushing me and growing me throughout those nine months, in order to now call me to serve and learn in a different place.
For four weeks now, I have been serving at a new placement. It will take more than just a blog post to convey all the things I’m learning from following God’s pushing to this point, but I figure I have to start somewhere to share my experiences! I now live in a town called Nyirtelek, and am connected closely with the Lutheran church here (I live in an apartment over the church and my front door is literally 4 steps from the Pastor’s front door if that doesn’t give you an idea of what ‘closely connected’ might mean). Throughout the week, I travel to a small town nearby, called Görögszállás, which has a majority Roma population. My work in Görögszállás primarily takes place in the children’s house (something like a day care, or preschool). On occasion, I also journey with the Pastor, to events in Nyirtelek, and surrounding areas, in an effort to encourage dialogue around the situation of the Roma, and to stimulate the building of relationships between Roma and non-Roma people. It has been an incredible blessing to see the work that is being done here, to see people truly dedicated to living out the mission of God, by reaching out in the name of Jesus, and seeing people come to know him as a result. I am reminded again and again, that no matter how much we try to teach morals, or advocate for social justice, it all adds up to nothing without the power and name of Jesus Christ behind it all.
Many of the teenagers involved in the youth group here struggle deeply with things like smoking, gossiping, fighting (verbally or physically), and having sex outside of marriage (some of their parents even encourage it because having a baby would mean that the teenager no longer has to go to school). It can be easy to look at those around us who are struggling with immoral behaviors, or who are caught in unjust, or inhumane circumstances, and think that the best thing we can do for them is to rid them of those immoral behaviors, or to ‘fix’ those less than ideal circumstances. I think the pastor here has the right idea though, when he says that his real and primary concern is their salvation. We should not be complacent when we see people in unjust, inhumane circumstances, or in bondage to sinful behaviors, but we must remember that the only thing that can genuinely free them, and us, from such things, is a relationship with God.
God calls us to act justly and walk beside our brothers and sisters of all backgrounds and circumstances. It’s important to remember, however, that God’s great commission is for us to share the Good News, and make disciples throughout the nations (Matthew 28:19). On their own, justice, equality, and morals do not lead us to our Lord and King. Rather, our relationship with the Heavenly Father gives us reason and ground to act in a just, morally up-right way, and to see and treat everyone around us as equals. It’s a scary thing when the cart comes before the horse, and it is a beautiful sight to behold when it follows smoothly behind. Many Christian churches today seem to be taking a hard turn toward goals of social justice, equal rights, and eliminating the ‘problems’ of this world. Those are all great things which God calls us to pursue, but we must remember that in the end, the only thing that can and will get rid of all the problems in this world is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. As Christ’s followers, we need to remember that God does call us to show our neighbors love in all of our words and actions. Take James 2: 14-17 for example: “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” Our faith is made complete by what we do (James 2:22), and opportunities abound to act on that faith every day, whether it be a neighbor in need of food, a friend seeking a shoulder to cry on, or a complete stranger, desperate for a voice who will advocate for them. God calls us to be his hands and feet on this earth, and as God’s messengers and servants, we must remember that what this world really needs is a relationship with the Lord. We can show the love and hope and peace and strength of God to those around us through the way we act and speak, but we must always give credit to the reason for why we act in such a way – pointing them to the Father.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I (Jesus) have commanded you.
Matthew 28:19-20
No comments:
Post a Comment