As I’ve been soaking up all that is lovely about being home in Minnesota where there are shady trees and lakes and bike trails, I’ve had to reconcile the fact that I am blessed with all this and most people aren’t.
As much as we had delightful experiences during our time away, we also were involved in the work of World Vision for a time which brought us into relationship with the poorest of the poor – courageous men and women who are holding onto hope under the worst of circumstances.
How can such beauty exist in a world alongside the ugliness of AIDS, dirty water, violence, poverty…? And why am I privileged to enjoy the beauty when others aren’t?
I talked to a friend of mine about a month ago who is engaged in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. She has shared similar struggles to reconcile her privilege with the pain of others.
She had come from a trip to the Middle East and was on a sailing trip with her son in the most beautiful part of the world as she grappled with this. After wrestling for weeks she felt like God’s word to her was “This - all around you - is My creation. It’s how I meant the world to be before sin entered. The beauty, and the joy you experience are good gifts from Me. Soak up all you can. Use it to fuel your passion to advocate on behalf of those who do not have what you do.”
Another friend’s words have also been helpful. His prayer each morning is:
Lord let me see what you see and hear what you hear.
Let my heart be broken by the things that break your heart.
And help me not to duck.
So, these days I’m trying not to duck. I’m soaking up “patches of God light” and trying to find more ways to help our friends in the shadows.
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