This weekend, as we do on a monthly basis, we took a group of middle school and high school youth downtown to spend time with and serve some of our homeless brothers and sister in downtown Memphis. Over the past several years, the city government as well as a group called the Center City Commission have continually subtracted areas that we might consider public spaces to become somewhat hostile for many working poor and homeless people. I was able to use a simple nature call to illustrate this point to our group. While we were downtown, one of our kids needed to go to the restroom. So, using the buddy system, I let the young person go to try to find a place to use the bathroom. Well after about 15 minutes, they came back frustrated because no business would allow them in to use the restroom. They went to 8 separate places and were turned away at each one-often by paid security guards.
I was frustrated for him, but it did not pass without a teaching moment. I asked our group during reflection time where they thought many of the homeless people we had just served go to use the bathroom. Where do they go when the body that God created works as it is supposed to and they need to go to the bathroom? This may not seem like a big deal, and I would argue that it may seem that way because you have a place that you can go to “relieve” yourself with out jeers, eye-rolling of passers-by, or legal trouble from Memphis’ finest.
This isn’t a problem only in Memphis. This happens in many urban environments. I wonder if this could be part of a modern day parable of sheep and goats from Matthew 25…when i needed a place to go pee without harassment, you let me use your bathroom…or not. This may sound silly to many, but this speaks directly to the compassionate hospitality that is mandated in the scripture of the Old and New Testaments.
Last month I was reading the blog of a very innovative church, Lifechurch.tv, to be exact, and the pastor, Craig Groeschel, had been blogging about the code. Particularly he was talking about the code of values that drive Lifechurch.tv. One of the most powerful ones said that they would be known for what they are for, not what they are against. In a world where negativity is the means of clarifying values, here is a group that say they will be known for the things that they are for. How attractive! If you are in the people business, this is very sound advice. Be known for what we are for and we will attract the people who want to be a part of our action. Negativity attracts detractors and bitterness. Positive identity will go so much farther in this world.
