in a sweater, poorly knit. [174]

we, as Christians, have a calling to serve those in need and impact those around us. if there are Christians in an area, then that area should be improving. but you may be thinking: i'm young. there's not much i can do. i'll wait until i'm an adult. but the Bible says in first timothy, "don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity."
you actually have more opportunities since you're young. no career. no spouse. no kids. no bills. well, maybe some but not as much as when you're an adult. you might be thinking you don't have enough money to donate. the thing is, Jesus doesn't need money. there are things you can do to impact your community that will only cost you your time.
Jesus talks to His disciples about the judgment. He tells about how His followers will be questioned. He asks why we didn't feed the hungry, heal the sick, visit the imprisoned, clothe the hungry, house the homeless. at the end He says, "Truly, I say to you, to the extent that you did to one of these brothers of mine, you did it to Me." (matthew 25:40).
Jesus never says to the poor, "come, find the church." He says to those of us in the church, "go into the world and find the poor, hungry, homeless, imprisoned." true compassion and outreach is more than giving money to the begging. if you ask the poor, they will tell you who the Christians are. poverty was created not by God but by you and me, because we have not learned to love our neighbors as ourselves.
i read this book by an extreme follower of Christ. his name is shane claiborne. the book is called the irresistible revolution. the whole book impacted my life. but one excerpt opened my eyes to a truth of this world.
when i ask God why all of these injustices are allowed to exist in the world, i can feel the Spirit whisper to me, "you tell Me why we allow this to happen. you are My body, My hands, My feet."
we allow people to be poor, hungry, homeless.
Christianity is for sick people. in matthew 9:12-13, Jesus says this to the Pharisees, "it is not those who are healthy who need a physician but those who are sick. but go and learn what this means, 'i desire compassion, and not sacrifice for i did not come to call the righteous but the sinners.'"
if we are the body of Christ, then are here for the sinners. and being sinners as well, we are here for each other.
going back to the beginning, if there are Christians in an area then that area should be improving.
but how do we improve our area?
there are places to volunteer. community hope center, riverbend family ministries. all it takes is you contacting the ministries and centers in your area.
there are homeless people in wood river. it's sad, really. they're people in need of clothes, you could hold a clothing drive. EAWR students in need of uniforms. people in need of food, so hold a food drive. people with no a/c who are in need of fans, hold a fan drive. and find out who needs what.
it takes work but Jesus never said being a servant and helping others would be easy. He just said it would worth it.