Lip-serving suffering humanity?

They’d been living on the streets for about 18 months, after hitching into the city from the bush. The life they’d left “back home” was dysfunctional, violent and disapproving of the young couple.

During the daylight hours they’d split up, strategically raiding the bins for a feed or a makeshift blanket and pillow. At night they’d bed down in the back stairwell of a church; they figured they’d be safe there.

A couple of the teenagers from the church had befriended them, surreptitiously slipping them the odd biscuit or cup of coffee on a weeknight or Sunday. But the caretaking team and the minister had other ideas; they felt the presence of this couple was threatening and unhealthy.  Their bedding was regularly binned. The place where they slept was washed out with a fire hose in the afternoon to make it uninhabitable. After several altercations with the church people and a number of visits by the police, the couple eventually moved on.

This is a true and distressing story of un-Christlike behaviour by a church. What’s even sadder is that the church in this story is a Salvation Army corps.

Emblazoned on one of the splendid banners in their hall is the stated aim to “Serve Suffering Humanity”. These words are regularly given lip service, along with “Grow Saints” and “Save Souls”. Prayers are regularly proclaimed for the Lord to “guide troubled souls to our door,” and it’s also the stated purpose for the regular outreach activities. Sadly, there are Salvationists in that particular fellowship, and throughout the Army world, who are yet to see the people literally at our doorsteps as an answer to our prayers.

I’m reminded of the lyrics of the late Christian songwriter and prophet, Keith Green, who sang:

He brings people to your door,
And you turn them away,
As you smile and say,
God bless you, be at peace;
And all heaven just weeps
‘Cause Jesus came to your door
You’ve left him out on the streets…

Keith Green wrote “Asleep in the Light” after being inspired by reading the Army Founder’s manifesto In darkest England and the way out. William Booth’s vision for reaching the lost was a genuine effort to live out Christ’s story of the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:31-46). When did Salvationists decide that looking after people like that young, homeless couple wasn’t part of our core (or corps) business?

Serving suffering humanity can’t be done just by writing a cheque or by remote control from your comfortable lounge room. Things are going to get grubby and that’s why we as an army are known to roll up our sleeves and “muck in” (as the English say).  It’s always been a distinctive feature of our Army. More and more, our previously safe and sanitised suburban corps are being called upon to engage with the lost, the last and the least on a daily basis, just as Salvationists did at the beginning of our movement.

Are we ready to handle this onslaught? Are we ready to share this pain? Do we have programs and personnel ready to meet the individual needs of the people who live near our corps? Or are we too tied up in providing a solid, middle class place for our “own people” that we have lost the distinct purpose for which the Salvation Army was raised up?

Thankfully, there are many corps that now have “mission” as the centrepiece for every activity that they engage in. I believe that those corps prosper because they are being true to God’s purpose for the Salvation Army. Mission requires flexible and passionate people who are not content to just sit in the pews, sing a song or tootle through a mouthpiece. Our whole life is about loving Jesus, being guided by the Holy Spirit and living a life of sacrifice, quite often out of our comfort zones.

Keith Green again…

To obey is better than sacrifice,

I want more than Sundays and Wednesday nights.  (ex I Samuel 15:22)

Let’s do more than just give lip service to suffering humanity.

6 Comments to Lip-serving suffering humanity?

1. well done bruce…..
Tim the enchanter on December 6th, 2008

2. The sad part is, this is not an uncommon scenario and one that each of us involved with walking alongside the poor have faced far too many times.
   In fact, most people that I know who have ‘burned out’ in this kind of ministry have done so not because the street stories are too painful to deal with, but because the ‘establishment’ (meaning the church and the administration) keeps putting up barriers and road blocks.

   There’s a church just north of the shelter I work at, which is perfectly located to journey alongside folks on the street, that just installed black metal rails all over their front steps so as to prevent homeless people from sitting or sleeping there. Their defense of this; they scare our church members away and they are an eye sore.

   What a pathetic display of kingdom values.

   Thankfully, there are more Christians waking up to the hypocrisy of this kind of behaviour.

   Come Lord Jesus; come quickly.
Dion Oxford on December 6th, 2008

3. Thanks Bruce,

   It is a challenge for us all. I’m reminded of another young couple who at least got some hay to lay on when there was no room in the inn.
   Lord, help us to give you more than just lip service, Amen!
   God bless,
   Rick
Rick on December 9th, 2008

4. This is so true, I am tired of lip service. I hear it see it regularily in my work with outreach. Not many want to get involved.

   God is handing out pink slips, the position of pew warmer is being terminated.

   R
Randy on November 24th, 2009

5. A homeless couple sleeping at the back of a church spoke to me this morning.

   The church had thrown away their only bag of clothes. Now they have no change of underwear, socks or…anything!

   Sobbing, the woman said “in spite of being homeless I just like to change my underwear everyday and now thats been taken awayfrom me”. Can we help? Do we want to help? …what again?

   KE
Ke Enn on November 25th, 2009

6. I find it amazing that you guys have picked this one up today after it has been on the site for almost a year, because just today I found out that the brand new sleeping bags that were provided by a SA social service to people sleeping at the backdoor have disappeared.

   Apparently these dreadful people pose a clear and present danger to the members of the corps. At the same time the officer is moaning about the lack of opportunities that the Corps has for engagement as an inner city corps.

   Rubi-Ed
Rubi-Ed on November 25th, 2009

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