we all need each other

Observation #2: The rich and poor need each other.

I'm reading "The Twenty-Piece Shuffle" by Greg Paul right now. Greg Paul is the founder and director of Sanctuary Ministries, which "prioritizes welcoming and caring for people living on the fringes of society" (says the blurb on the back), specifically those living in Toronto. I visited Sanctuary's drop-in once and it was definitely a learning experience. There are lots of differences between the drop-in I work in at the Yonge Street Mission and Sanctuary, though I do believe that the heart behind why we do what we do is the same -- because we recognize God's calling to all His people to live out His kingdom right here and right now. His kingdom includes the sharing of life between rich and poor, the haves and have-nots, and the sharing of the gospel includes not just preaching a prayer but actually doing life together. I can readily admit that I am still far from "doing life together" in its most real and practical sense with the people that I meet at the Mission. There's still a large and safe distance I keep with the "community members" that I "serve". It's an issue that we at the Mission talk about a lot, but I think we have still a ways to go.

Greg Paul and the team at Sanctuary continue to challenge themselves and others in doing life much more authentically, and Greg wrote this book to remind us all that we shouldn't do things for the poor because they're the ones that need the help, but because we also need the help. Through a series of real narratives of people he's journeyed with (including people from the streets and people from nice fancy houses) he tells us how "the addiction to numb a troubled spirit is not confined to the streets". In other words, many of us who "have" are in many ways just as (or even moreso) lost and needy of God's grace and it is in God's clever and paraxodical ways that he made it so that His grace can be recieved through us sharing with those we think have nothing to give us -- the poor, homeless, smelly, messed up people. I have definitely experienced this firsthand in many moments at my work at the Mission.

Read the book! I definitely recommend it to everyone. You can borrow it from me if you'd like.

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Observation #3: I need my new parents.

This past weekend, I went to Pittsburg with my husband and parents-in-law. It was our first family trip together and I must say that it went wonderfully. I got to hang out with both of them much more than I had before (usually our time together is a meal or two together) and we had lots more conversation.

I knew this before but felt even more strongly this weekend how blessed I am to have in-laws like I do. They are extremely generous to us and I can tell they want to get to know me as much as I want to get to know them. I can sense that their steady presence in our lives will be so important as Kevin and I continue to build our family. We need our parents! Hopefully we will be able to be as much of a blessing back to them as they are to us...

Oh, and Pittsburg was cooler than I expected too. :) Go Steelers, go!