In the Neighborhood

Three years ago at Urbana 09 we talked about how Jesus "dwelled among us." He lived incarnationaly on earth to dwell among his people he ministered to. He lived with them, as them, and lived, breathed, and felt their struggles and pain.

I claim that's what I want to do. I claim I want to live "incarnationaly." But until I follow through with that, I am just throwing out fancy, hip Christian words to seem relevant. My claims and beliefs get put to the test very quickly.

Living intentionally "in the neighbored" is not easy. Living intentionally in a place of lower income to be with those you want to serve and learn from isn't glamorous. It can mean having to deal with shitty parking situations. It can mean having air conditioning in only room. It can mean having bugs in the apartment. It isn't the prettiest or easiest thing to.

My initial reaction to get out when things get hard. To return to my safe bubble, to return to what is easy.

But life wasn't easy for Jesus. He was fully God and fully man. He endured pain, hunger, thirst, loneliness, suffering just like any human when he didn't have to. When he was on the cross, he could have just as easily come down and said "ENOUGH! It's not worth this."

But he didn't. To Jesus, it was TOTALLY worth it. It was worth enduring all the pain, the fear, the suffering to be with his people again. It gives me hope that living this counter-cultural lifestyle of living among the least of these will be and currently is totally worth it. It gives me hope to keep pushing through the things which are difficult, the heat, the bugs, and the people who don't understand. It gives me hope I can sacrifice some comfortability so that someone could hear the gospel. I mean isn't that what Jesus did?