WHAT BECAME OF…?
This summer, a small team led by Pastor Sean Warren and Director of Community Life // Rachel Olimb, had the opportunity to partner with the the Town of Gilbert, Salvation Army and AZCEND as we opened our church doors as a Cooling Station for those in need within our community. Each day, up to two dozen men, women and families were meet with a safe and cool place to seek refuge from the heat. We were thankful for the opportunity to share home-cooked meals, build relationships and meet real tangible needs of our neighbors experiencing homelessness. We are so thankful for the opportunity to serve our community and give God the glory for the good and the God-stories that came from opening our doors to our neighbors!
Below is Pastor Sean’s encouraging and challenging journalistic thoughts as he and the team helped wrap up the Cooling Station for the summer:
What became of all the little boys and girls…
Who grew up in a house with things breaking, or bottles, cans and paraphernalia scattered about? Or who grew up with just one parent, or a grandparent who couldn’t cope with the stress of life? Or perhaps they had no loving adults, and just the cold confines of a government institution who kept them alive.
What became of all the little boys and girls…
Who never had enough to eat at home? Who never had an adult who considered them a first priority. Who had to depend on the benevolence of others, a school lunch program, or summer backpacks filled with food to survive.
What became of all the little boys and girls…
Who were bullied for how they dressed, or smelled, or acted. Who couldn’t possibly fit in. Who didn’t know how to express their pain. Who knew they were an outsider. Who knew that others had something better, something they would never know.
What became of all the little boys and girls…
Who had their innocence stolen by a monster? Who found their sexuality scrambled, confusing, and scary. Who were leery of those in authority, The boys and girls who never talked. Who seemed to have no emotion, a blank, flat stare, a vacant expression.
What became of all the little boys and girls…
Who never got an appropriate education? Who can’t spell, or do math, or navigate the halls of learning. Who never had the opportunity to attend a summer camp, or participle on a sports team, or attend a loving church youth group event.
What became of all the little boys and girls…
Who never had someone to take them to the park. Or give them a birthday party. Or tell them they were handsome or beautify. Who never had a bedtime story, or loving hands to gently tuck them into bed at night, or were checked on when it was thundering or lightning.
What became of all the little boys and girls?
They are in our town or city.
We drive past them every day.
They are not a problem to be solved.
They are people to be loved, not judged.
So the next time you find yourself aggravated with how your community is being impacted by issues such as homelessness, addiction, and poverty just remember, each person has a story. And not everyone had the opportunities, love, or foundation in life that you did. Stop using words that demean and rob a person of dignity…like hooker, ho, bum, junkie, crack head, etc.
Speak words of life to the least, the last, and the lost.
Teach words of hope and dignity to your children.
And please don’t criticize what you are not personally looking to improve.
What became of all the little boys and girls?
To a great extent depends on me…depends on you.
“Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? When did we see You a stranger and invite You in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see You sick or in prison and go to visit You?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of Mine, you did for Me.’”