I think that Sesame Street song would sound a little different if written about the people in my neighborhood. (For starters, it'd have to have a good beat to it so you could bump it in your car and make the windows rattle.) I live in an area near downtown that's very diverse, but most of the youth I know come from families that are lower SES, single-parent (usually mom or grandma) homes. I've discovered a tiny bit of what life is like for them. Sometimes in my (often self-righteous) anger, I get frustrated with people who make derrogatory or hateful comments about people in situations like those of my neighbors, and I think, "What do they know? They just don't get it. If they only had to walk a mile in a pregnant teen's shoes or be a single mom working three jobs to make ends meet, they might have a little more compassion."
But recently, I've had to evaluate my attitude. Even though I live in this "rough" part of town, do I know really understand what life is like for my some of my neighbors? Have I ever had to go without electricity because I couldn't pay my bill? Have I ever had to take public transportation because I couldn't afford to get my car fixed or because I had no car? Have I ever had to go without a meal, hoping the next one would come in a couple days after a paycheck? No. And these are only obstacles in the physical realm, not even including the feelings of desperation, despair, neglect, hurt, and oppression that seem to cycle through some of these families.
Can I ever fully relate to the issues these families face? Probably not, since for whatever reason I am blessed with friends and familiy who would never leave me out in the cold, figuratively or literally speaking. But I can ask the Lord to continue to show me glimpses into my neighbors' lives and ask him to break my heart for them. Not only does he answer my requests, but then he reminds me of his redemptive plan for these families. And although he is the only one that can save and redeem, he allows ordinary Joes (or Janes in my case) to see these situations of hurt and sadness and act for change. He has allowed me this year to see the needs of the marginalized, and develop relationships with them. Even upon befriending them, I will never completely understand what life is like in the "hood," but I'm forever grateful for opportunities to bring the hope of Christ to hopeless lives. Jesus completely understands their life circumstances, and I want so much to communicate that to my friends here by the way I live. With only a couple more months in my neighborhood, I want to seize every opportunity to allow God to open my eyes to the needs of his people, and respond in a manner worthy of the gospel.
