REFLECTIONS ON CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY BY DIETRICH BONHOEFFER

“He who would serve his brother in the fellowship must sink all the way down to these depths of humility.  How can I possibly serve another person in unfeigned humility if I seriously regard his sinfulness as worse that my own?  Would I not be putting myself above him; could I have any hope for him?  Such service would be hypocritical.”

“In a Christian community everything depends upon whether or not each individual is an indispensable link in a chain.  Only when even the smallest link is securely interlocked is the chain unbreakable.  A community which allows unemployed members to exist within it will perish because of them.  It will be well, therefore, if every member receives a definite task to perform for the community, that he may know in hours of doubt that he, too, is not useless and unusable.  Every Christian community must realize that not only do the weak need the strong, but also that the strong cannot exist without the weak.  The elimination of the weak is the death of fellowship.”

“But not only my neighbor’s will, but also his honor is more important than mine.  ‘How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only?’ – John 5:44.  The desire for one’s own honor hinders faith.  One who seeks his own honor is no longer seeking God and his neighbor.”

“God does not will that I should fashion the other person according to the image that seems good to me, that is, in my own image; rather in his very freedom from me God made this person in His image.  I can never know beforehand how God’s image should appear in others.”

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REFLECTION ON SKID ROW IN LOS ANGELES

Lauren Ajalat

Los Angeles always looked like just a famous city

Hollywood sign and big buildings is what you see with your eyes

But go down further and you’ll find a surprise

People with no home, sleeping on the street

Desperate faces look at me, they’re so incomplete

How could my home, the place I grew up, be so dreary?

The city keeps secrets and people pretend to act cheery

We put the people with no home, no money, surviving off a dollar all in one place

So Los Angeles can look so surreal

But that’s not the case

TESTIMONY FROM YES LA SKID ROW STUDENT

Christopher Ajalat

I've been told all of my life that we don't need material things to be
happy, and I thought that I believed it.  Now that I have seen people with
much less than me who are way happier than me, I really understand what
that means.  We often see people on the streets and say, "I can help them"
and don't realize that they can help us just as much.  I've also realized
how much we learn in church that we don't use, but how easy it is to put it
to use.  We tend to think that there is no one in need near us, that to use
what we've learned in church we must travel to distant countries- but in
reality all we need to do is walk down the street.  We should never miss
out on a chance to meet a new person.  They have much to give us and we
them, so why do we ever avoid strangers?  American culture has taught us
that all strangers are dangerous, but more often than not you will walk
away a better person and having bettered them.

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SAY YES TO SOLITUDE

One very important part of being able to be in community is being able to be alone.  As Christ took his time away from the crowds for time alone with the Father, we must do the same to know His will for us and to know ourselves.  This quote from Dietrich Bonhoeffer says it all:

"Let him who cannot be alone beware of community. He will only do harm to himself and to the community. Alone you stood before God when He called you; alone you had to answer that call; alone you had to struggle and pray; and alone you will die and give an account to God. You cannot escape from yourself; for God has singled you out. If you refuse to be alone, you are rejecting Christ’s call to you, and you can have no part in the community of those who are called..."

If we are to truly find community with the poor, we must take time away in silence as a means to a necessary end:  to be strengthened in Christ in order to share His love and healing with others.  Start with 15 minutes a day in a quiet place that you consistently visit at a planned time.  Ask the Lord to bless that time, being with you as you allow the reality of your thoughts and feelings to surface and helping you to be open to His will.

Time alone with the Father will center you and help you to feel comfortable in your own skin.  It is through being alone that you will find yourself better equipped for community.

Katrina Bitar
YES North America Program Director

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As we approach the great feast of the Nativity of our Lord, it is likely that we will be feasting in various ways with various people.  It is a time to see each of these opportunities as a blessing to connect with family and friends... but also to connect your family with your needy brothers and sisters in Christ who will not be celebrating as you will.

There are some that won't have the warmth of a fireplace or the company of loved ones.  As you look around your dinner table and laugh with numerous family members that have come together for this feast, consider giving thanks to God for the love of the people around you by taking it to the streets!

-We all love leftovers.  That is true!  However, there will likely be a greater enjoyment in making your leftovers someone's first meal.

-Also consider the gifts you receive that you are likely to put away in a closet and never look at again, or toys that the children in your family don't get super excited about. Those gifts would do much better in the hands of someone who will find it to be such a treasure.

Bring your family and meet your extended family in a homeless kitchen or on the street.  It is not the amount of food or the quality of the gifts that will matter most, but the love and fellowship that you extend to your extended family- our most needy neighbors.  Give thanks for your family by being family for someone else.

Merry Christmas!

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Say YES to... putting first things first.

Reflecting on our priorties and how we spend our time can become very overwhelming.  Before taking on the task of restructuring your entire life, think about just one day.  Decide that from the time you wake up to the time you go to bed, that you will be present and mindful of the needs of others in every situation that God presents to you.  Keep your eyes open and stay on your toes.  Someone might have a task to accomplish and may just need one more set of hands to get it done.  As long as you are not neglecting something that is necessary for you to do, be the first to help them!

Whether it be your mother, sister, friend, or someone at school or work that you don't know at all... if you can help with what they need, step up! So often we wait for others to do what we can easily do ourselves because we don't want to exert the extra energy or take a break from something that can probably be put off for a few minutes. If you make the choice to be the first to help, you are choosing to set aside yourself and your comforts and let Christ work through you for someone else's sake.  This is being truly human.  The simple decision to put the other person first is not always easy, but it is simply being true to who God created you to be.  You will then soon discover the difference between comfort and joy.

Have goals and plan ahead, but don't forget to be present in the moment with the people you are surrounded by.  Bloom where God plants you!  The people around you RIGHT NOW are the ones to put first.

With love in Christ,

Katrina Bitar
YES Program Director
FOCUS North America

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