Real needs - the struggle is real.

I know that poverty and heart ache are issues that most think they understand but practically speaking don’t have a clue about what it would be like to go to bed hungry at night. We were visiting with some parents of one of our interns and the dad shared his story about losing his parents when he was a little kid. All of a sudden I could see a light go on in his eyes where I knew he got it when we talked about some of our kids and teens not getting enough to eat. I have shared stories like this with many but the response doesn’t necessarily mean doing something positive to help others with real needs today.  Our hope is to provide help for today but also get motivational inspiration to our kids, teens and young adults so they can be different as they grow up.

As I was driving home a group of kids and teens from tutoring I was angered by the fact that one of my seniors who is graduating was forbad from going to the prom. I struggled with the reason, which didn’t seem life threatening. I knew ultimately that the reason came back to resources. I am around many that end up screaming out ‘it’s not fair’, why is it always the case that I can’t do something that everyone else is doing. I understand that going to the prom isn’t like going without dinner last night or not having a bus pass to get to school. One of my teens has coined the phrase, ‘the struggle is real’.

I had one of my moms bring a laptop that we had given her to our tutoring session last night. It had this bulge on the backside, which I know she didn’t understand, what had taken place. I knew that the battery had literally blow up and was now dead. Fortunately, you could still plug this directly into power and it worked fine. Yet, without resources this laptop isn’t good to be mobile.  The struggle is real!

I have another situation where a single mom wasn’t able to get housing for her family. They had to leave their past residence because the house was being sold. Anne and I are thrilled to help but can’t relate to how it feels for this mom to be in this predicament where she has to depend upon others. This becomes too often the life of many that don’t have the means to ‘stay afloat’. The struggle is real.

I got a call from one of my grandmas in the neighborhood who has to have a knee replacement. She is an amazing friend and much a part of what we do in our neighborhood. She is blessed to have worked a lifetime and has the means to have the surgery and be able to recover afterwards. We have another mom, who is also now a grandma, that has tumors that have to be removed. The fear is that these are cancerous but also that their insurance won’t cover all of the costs. They are reluctant to tell the dad that works outside the area. The struggle is real.

I know that when someone says that they will pray for me when I’m in the midst of a crisis I usually say thank you! Yet, I also secretly hope that they might also do something practical to show their concern and love. I know that my grandma who is having knee replacement surgery would be blessed if a few of us took her flowers before her surgery and then be willing to provide transportation if needed. I can also relate to some of my teens who have little resources that do want to go to the prom or a high school graduation party. Yet, without the means they just can’t do it. The struggle is real.

Yes, there is a real life struggle going on for everyone. The challenge is that we all experience brokenness in our relationships to friends, family and God. The most amazing gift is to have someone who we have hurt come back to us and ask to work through the hurt and bitterness. It isn’t easy to go from pretending to be a Christ follower to being someone that is humble enough to express to the Father a broken heart that needs to be mended by God’s grace and mercy. The person who is truly poor is the one who hasn’t experienced God’s reconciling love and then the acceptance and mutual forgiveness from a family member or a friend. The struggle is real but you don’t have to face it alone!