Touring the streets

Tonight we went to Joel (our professor)'s house for dinner and to see where he lived. He lives downtown GR where he serves. Many people would not consider his neighborhood safe enough to raise children in. There was a rape in the park kiddie corner from his house, drug deals in the same park, and shootings nearby as well. It was cool to see the place where he does his urban ministry and gave me a bit of a taste of what kinds of things I might be working with someday.

I couldn't help feeling really uncomfortable in the neighborhood though. Here I am a white girl from the subarbs scoping out the inner city. It got me thinking about my possible sphere of influence someday when I get a job. I'm not sure I am cut out for, or have the desire to work with students in the inner city. Now granted, it is not what I feel my calling is, but I do have to face the fact that there is a chance that I would be working with them in some format. Oh to know what God has in store...

One of the questions today was "how do we break the cycle of poverty for long term?" There were four "simple" solutions: homeownership, education, economics, and the Lordship of Christ. Wow. The problem is that those solutions are not exactly easy to "do". Programs are not the answer, life skills are. Especially the skills of budgeting, reading, and various other job skills.

My problem comes in when trying to figure out how to teach those skills, while still meeting people's physical needs while not allowing them to become dependent on me providing for those needs.

It was reiterated today how important it is to live in the community in which you serve. Again, it makes sense, it's just a little bit scary...

year of Jubilee

What if we still followed the Year of Jubilee laws?? What if every 7 years we gave back the land that we took and forgave debts? The Bible has much to say about poverty; in fact, it talks more about poverty and injustice than it does about homosexuality and yet we (the church) constantly focus on the issue of homosexuality. Perhaps our priorities are a little messed up.

Did you know that for every $1 the developing world receives in grants, it spends $13 repaying debts? (http://www.globalissues.org/TradeRelated/Facts.asp#fact13#fact13) What would happen if we were to reinstate the Year of Jubilee? Shouldn't forgiveness permeate every aspect of our lives, including the government and international affairs?

myths of the city

Today we talked about poverty and various myths about the city. One of the myths that I have fallen into is the myth that the city is extremely dangerous and not safe enough to raise a family in. Sure, it makes sense. We hear about all of the crime stats and the drive-by shootings and we get scared. But here's my professor who has dedicated himself and his family to the city and is living there among the people who he serves. he says that most of the shootings happen among people that know each other. That eases my concerns a bit.

Another myth is that God is found more so in nature than in the city. That's one that I have to disagree wholeheartedly with. Being a self-proclaimed "city girl" I am always amazed at what I find in the city. Here are man-made creations that tower higher than trees. In the words of my friend, "God told us to subdue the earth, and boy have we subdued it".