Larry James spoke at Highland Oaks this morning. I always hate/love to hear Larry...he's got such a brilliant mind and such a rabid commitment to Jesus, but he always convicts me of the need to help society's disenfranchised people, and I don't often jump in line to help 'em.
Let's be honest here. There are reasons that when we go out to eat, we eat at Cotton Patch in Rockwall and not the McDonalds near Fair Park in South Dallas. There was a reason we left a paid-for house in Dallas and moved to almost-crime-free Rockwall, starting from scratch with a new mortgage. Associating with people on the fringe of society is something I try to avoid for the most part. It's dangerous, they can take advantage of you, and they don't smell so good.
But if Jesus had been born in Balch Springs instead of Bethlehem, and if the year of birth had been 1979 instead of 0, I think He would be seeking out these folks on a daily basis, perhaps living amongst them. And His disciples would be clocking in every day at Central Dallas Ministry, the amazing brainchild of Larry James. And, given those circumstances, would anything change in the way I live life?
I pretty much content myself with trying to help those in my circle of family and friends. I do randomly slip some cash to guys in South Dallas that I see on my school bus route, but that's a once-a-month thing. I guess what I'm saying is that I wish I were doing more for the down-and-out, that I realize of whom much has been given, much is required. Have I got the guts to do that?
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Matt Chandler had a saying after a big point was made in his sermon - Amen or Ouch. Larry James can make us say that phrase everyday.
Michael and I have often talked about whether or not we are following God the way we should by living in our neighborhood and surrounding ourselves with the friends that we have. How are we impacting the world? How is the world impacting us? Is being "safe" what Jesus would have done? The Good Samaritan wasn't being safe and he's the prime example of what it means to be a neighbor, despite our differences. Sometimes I feel like I hold my title as daughter, wife, and mother and the responsibilities that come with those titles over the bigger title of Christian.
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