Today's BUILD - Part One

Okay, so today's BUILD was a mix of inspiration and frustration. Mary Nelson's hour-long overview of Bethel New Life's three-decade work in Garfield Park was awesome. I was floored by the audacity (to use her term) of community elders years ago who decided to get into housing. I was amazed by the courage and perseverance of community leaders and lay people in the face of setbacks, no's, and other struggles. And I came away jazzed by our awesome God who has done such a great work through ordinary people. The asset-based approach to community development was very instructive for me, especially as I start a new high school that I hope will be community-oriented. I was challenged to view the students and families as having individual strengths and the community as possessing a wealth of resources in their associations, institutions, cultural history, stories, and land. And then connecting those resources was a further insight. As I think about and begin to form partnerships with those outside of the community for the benefit of my students, I must do what I have said I will do and look within the community as well -- I cannot ignore what people bring to the table themselves. My prayer is: Lord, give me the eyes to see what You have placed within the West side communities, and give me the humility and courage and wisdom to tap into those resources.

Okay, so that was the inspiration part....

After Ms. Nelson left, BUILD folks sat around and talked about questions her talk had sparked within us. One question that came up was whether or not it is essential to live within the community in which you serve -- whether or not you can truly have an impact on the poor if you don't live among them. I think we all agreed that the greatest impact you can have is when you are a part of the community you seek to serve. One young man shared how (though not from personal experience) your sense of urgency about poverty issues is heightened when you live in the neighborhood and hear gunshots at night yourself, versus being told about the experience from someone else. Yet, we all know folks who support city ministry both with finances and through volunteering, but who live in the suburbs or in better parts of the city. One woman talked about friends who have grown up 'in the hood' and don't want their children to experience the trials and tribulations of city life that they did, so they move out of the hood. Another young man commented how they take resources from the city (fellow Blacks in this case) so you have Black flight. I added, though, that I know folks who have a burden for urban ministry because that was their reality growing up, but they no longer live in the community. However, they are very active and have the same (or close to it) sense of urgency that community members have.

My personal thought on this matter is that you are most effective when you are a member of the community in which you serve (you relocate and live there), but you can have a degree of effectiveness if you have a sensitivity to city issues. I personally do not think everyone is called to live in the 'hood. I think God has His people everywhere, serving in all walks of life. I don't think it's any more spiritual to minister to the homeless than it is to minister to rich college kids. However, I do think God is calling every child of His to have a heart for the city, a sensitivity to its residents' needs, and a mentality that considers and cares for the poor and needy. What this translates into varies from person to person. For some, it is using their power and clout to affect legislation that supports the forgotten -- everything from fighting for a living wage to working for a change in the way public education is funded. For others, it is spending time on a regular basis volunteering in some way. For others, like my friend who grew up in the hood and no longer lives there, it is mentoring young people in foster family situations while caring for her daughters as a single mom. This woman is not concerned only with going to her daughter's volleyball games and dance recitals; she goes to the sports events of the youth she mentors, pays for them to have dance lessons along with her daughters, and makes sure they get into college as well as her daughter. Yet she doesn't live in the hood. But no one would say she has taken her resources away from the hood and abandoned those who could benefit from her example and her means.

Just my thoughts...