It's been a looooong few months for Evie and me. We both have demanding jobs. We have opened our home, first to a temporarily homeless unmarried couple with a child and, then, to a temporarily homeless guy who once worked with me and was waiting to move to warmer climes and, for the moment, had no place to stay. And, we're now preparing that space in our home for a college kid we heard of who's doing an internship for Evelyn's employer. Tiring stuff. Much more taxing than that, we are dealing with the declining health of my parents, who are physically strong but increasingly feeble in their minds.
We gathered with the Thursday group yesterday. The plan was to take a large check to cover past due rent and several hundred dollars of gift cards from the Sunday and Thursday gatherings to the young family struggling with the wife's terminal cancer.
As it turns out, she is in the hospital and in extremely grave condition and he is hiding out, not taking even phone calls from anyone. So, we didn't deliver the gifts. Ironically, while we were gathering, the family's landlord called to touch base with the guy in the gathering who is our contact person in this matter. The landlord is now joining us in fighting for them.
Interestingly, he asked if we were from (the area's most mega mega church) and was surprised to hear that we are a small group from two "house churches".
Anyway...
...we were all tired. We did something we sometimes, but rarely, do. We met in a public place, a local restaurant. The gathering was very low key. And, most likely, what we all needed.
None of us felt high enough up on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs to spur anyone on to love and good works. It was more on the order of holding each other up. The goal was the same. The ceiling was lower. The intimate fellowship was present.
Saturday, we leave for several days of much needed vacation, hopefully to return refreshed.
It struck me, when I wrote it, that our guy who's our contact person with the cancer family explained that we are not the area's mega mega church but "two" house churches. Two. Not three.
ReplyDeleteAnd, that's correct.
We are a network of three house churches but only two are practicing the amazing generosity I've been describing.
Why not the third gathering?
The other key person in that gathering knows about the need and of the response of the two other gatherings but didn't express interest in contributing in a sacrificial way.
She is a very devoted follower of Jesus and a committed participant in our third house gathering but she is also still connected to a traditional Christendom seeker-sensitive Sunday morning show practicing church. She is profoundly fascinated by our Sermon on the Mount rooted piety and I'm certain that she at least tithes. But, she gives to the church, to the support of a pastoral staff and the upkeep of a building, not to "the least of these". She regards that sort of giving as obedience to the way taught and lived by Jesus.
Apparently, she still sees no difference between our way of following Jesus and the more traditional way.
Is this a big deal? To a young family in desperate need of the mercy Jesus offers and commands of His followers it is.