As I look back over the past several months, I see a wealth of things that have happened and lessons I have learned from living in the Bing, but it is hard to choose one over another. Choosing one lesson that I have learned, I have seen what it looks like to not only live in true community, but to love your community.
This first became apparent to me when I overheard Kim, the wife of one of our church elders, turn to her husband and say, “We’re going to die in Memphis, aren’t we?” She didn’t seem to be saddened by this realization; it was more that she realized that their family is truly invested in this community and wants to see it changed. What this means is that for the community to truly change it is not going to take five years or even ten years, but a lifetime. She realized that seeing this community change will take a lot of effort and personal investment.
The most important community I have experienced personally is in the number of men who have taken an interest in my life. To begin with, I have an incredible mentor in Blair who truly cares about me and what is going on in my life, and he wants to help me to grow as a man. Also, I work with four of the godliest men that I have ever known. The more I work with these men the more I sense through their actions that they not only care about me but that they also want to teach me as much as they can. I have come to see that Eric really cares about us interns and making sure that we get as much as possible out of this internship. Besides the men I work and serve with, I can truly say that all of the neighbors I have met in the Bing seem to not only care about themselves and their families, but that they genuinely care about everyone in their neighborhood.
Another clear picture of community I have seen is the work weekend that the house church organized this spring. I was really impressed to see the number of people who showed up to work on the Weaver’s house. There were so many people that it was almost tough to find work to do. What was truly impressive was that a lot of the people who were there to work on the house had never met the Weaver's, they had simply heard about this family and knew that these neighbor’s needed help with their house, so they volunteered. This is what community looks like, a need being noticed and presented, and the church body responding to the need. Not only did people show up to meet the need of the Weaver’s, but also Onie, the owner of a local restaraunt, donated a free lunch to all of the workers who had come to do work.
I have also witnessed this community meet the needs through our house church network to find affordable housing for our Burundi neighbors. Our church leaders saw that the Burundi families were being forced to pay a high rent for apartments that weren’t adequate for their needs. The church leaders decided to buy a house and renovate it so that they could allow the Burundian families to move into a good, affordable house. What is truly amazing about this building project is that there was no money set aside in the church budget for this remodeling. It was simply brought in front of the church and members were asked to give money to meet this need. Currently a house for the Burundis is being built.
These are some specific men who have taught me a good deal about community, as well, the first of these men being Greg Rogers. It speaks a lot about him that when his life was exposed to this community, he decided not only to move into the community, but to build a house and move his family into the neighborhood. Immediately he began to care for those that he came across and those who asked him for help. He didn’t slow down at all when several families of Burundi refugees moved in behind him. In fact, it seems like he never stops trying to do all that he can to help people, whether it is as simple as explaining to our friends that they shouldn’t go through the trash or as complex as trying to learn their language so as to be able to better communicate with them. Also, it is truly impressive that his love for his neighbors is so strong that it is contagious and has affected not only his wife but his daughter also. When I think of what it looks like to be a neighbor, I think of Greg.
In the next man I have seen some of the hardships in trying to bring about true community. I’m talking about Rick. When we interns went through our spiritual gifts and people said that I have the gift of prophecy, I was encouraged because when I think about what a prophet looks like, I think of Rick. There is no one who I know that is more passionate about trying to end the injustice that he sees than Rick. However, this passion sometimes makes him appear to be the bad guy, but he is ok with that. Ultimately he knows that what he is doing is right and nothing else matters. He cares so much about his community that he is willing to put his kids in a school system which he describe as “a giant that needs to be stabbed in the stomach and have its head cut off.” He does this so that those around him will see that he cares enough about this neighborhood and the people in it that he is willing to face the same problems they face so as to bring about justice. Rick doesn’t care whether or not he is popular with people in the neighborhood or not because of his desire to see the neighborhood bettered and justice prevail. When I think about righteous anger, and it being put to good use, I think of Rick.
Lastly, after reading The Irresistible Revolution, I have been thinking a lot about what community looks like because I know that here in Binghamton we are a part of true community, but it definitely does not look like “The Simple Way”. What we do have is a community of people who love each other and are committed to making this neighborhood a better place. Whenever one of us has a need that must be met, it is brought before the church and met by the other members. I am truly blessed to be able to count myself as a member of this community.
February, 2008
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