This last week has been fairly strange and eye opening for me. I started doing a Chaplaincy program at a Hospital here in Dallas that is both one of the largest and the one that reaches out to a clientele of lower economic status.
You should also know that I do youth ministry at a church smack dab in the middle of one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in the United States. I also live in that neighborhood so it is very much a part of who I am.
I didn't grow up in this neighborhood and I am not always comfortable here. What I'm finding is that my time at the hospital is incredibly rewarding because it is giving me a greater exposure to the "real" world. This week I've had to already be with many people going through immense pain. I've also had to try and express my pastoral care through my own broken spanish and fumbled prayers. I'm realizing that God has put me in this place to stretch, grow and remind me how much people need him.
Ministering in a wealthy community can be tough because there can be a much less reliance upon God because problems can be solved in a variety of ways. Usually there are many more resources.
So I'm going to be living in this contrast for the next bunch of months. I'm hoping to learn a ton and to never forget the lessons.
When I moved to N. Dallas I lived in an apt near a very wealthy neighborhood. I wanted to do some evangelism and went out to share the Gospel. I walked up to a house and made my introduction and the man at the door told me to look around. He asked me what possible thing Jesus could give him that he didn’t have or could possibly want. It was an interesting insight into a world I had never seen before.
Exactly. Up and Out is on a magain just like Down and Out both need Jesus.
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