Lazarus on the Doorstep

There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. Luke 16:19-21 NRSV

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about Jesus’ story of the rich man and Lazarus. I don’t think of myself as rich in economic terms, even though I know I am compared to how most of the people in the world live. Jesus’ parable invites each of us, no matter our income, to see ourselves in the rich man who ignores the beggar on his doorstep. The rich man throws away food that the beggar is literally dying to have.

This story comes to my mind, because there are destitute men, many of them homeless, practically on the doorstep of First Christian Church. I’ve had some recent encounters with one of them. His name is Dan, and you may know him as the guy who has several feathers sticking out of his baseball cap and who pushes a shopping filled with all sorts of odds and ends around downtown St. Joseph. I noticed Dan a few weeks ago digging through a dumpster of a nearby business. He wasn’t searching for food but for scrap metal that he could recycle for a few bucks. It turns out his cart is full of aluminum cans, pieces of steel from old machinery and spools of old wiring. He spends his nights moving between shelters, government-subsidized boarding houses and other places depending on the worth of the scrap metal he’s found that day.

I suspect that some in our church know Dan better than me, including fthe acts about his history, family and mental condition that have lead him to this kind of existence. All I know is that he’s been grateful for my attention and our conversations. In our first meeting, I offered him some cans sitting around the church which he was grateful for. The next few times we simply chatted. At our last meeting, I was on my way to Hardee’s for lunch, so I bought an extra combo meal for him. Dan was excited about the curly fries. We’ll see what happens next time.

This holiday season, I’m thinking a lot about Dan and others like him that pass by our church every day. I’m thinking about Jesus’ story about the rich man and Lazarus too. Our church supports some wonderful ministries, such as the Open Door Food Kitchen and Interserv, that help people like Dan, but I sense that God is asking more from us. If you’re like me, you always mean to help out more during the holiday season, but those good intentions get lost in the rush. What if this year we spent some time being intentional about helping someone in need—time normally spent shopping for presents, heading to parties or decorating the tree?
The Open Door Food Kitchen always needs additional volunteers. Interserv always needs additional donations of food this time of year. In fact, Interserv is seeking financial donations so that its new Cold Weather Shelter can open several weeks earlier than planned to provide shelter to homeless people in the winter. These are just a few of the possibilities that exist for you and me to avoid the fate of the rich man in Jesus’ story.

This season I am trying to listen to what God is saying to me about what more I can do to help First Christian Church minister to some of the neediest people in our city. I hope that you will do the same.

Grace and Peace,
Chase