It's Worth It

My own words, the ones I’ve spoken countless times at various trainings and KCB classes, were bouncing around in my brain all day. I couldn’t get my own voice out of my head:

“You have to establish a real relationship with your marginalized neighbors.

It’s hard.

It takes time.”

“You have to form an actual friendship to make any kind of sustainable difference.

It’s hard.

It takes time.

It COSTS YOU something”

I was spending the day with a young friend who was currently homeless, trying to help her get access to a stable roof over her head. Since my role at KCB these days involves mostly administrative tasks… my case management skills were a little rusty. Nevertheless, I did my best to ask good questions, listen a LOT, and wrack my brain for tangible ways that I could love and support my neighbor.

It was hard.

It took time.

It cost me something.

Yet, those 12 hours drove me to the feet of Jesus in a way that I don’t believe I have ever experienced before. On my own, I couldn’t solve the glaring problems and impossible hurts that my friend was facing. I couldn’t wave a magic wand and conjure up a workable solution. I came to the end of my rope, desperate for the Lord to intervene. In hindsight, it’s clear that’s exactly where He needed me to be.

Jehovah Jireh, God the provider, did provide a solution for my friend. Yet, His provision is not the end of the story. Sure, she has a roof over her head and regular meals to count on, but a real relationship… a real friendship… wouldn’t be content with just that. A real relationship means I follow up regularly. A real relationship means I make a space at my family’s table this Christmas. A real relationship mean I continue riding out the lows and celebrating the successes.

It’s hard.

It takes time.

It will cost me something.

And it’s SO worth it.

Matthew 25:30

I tell you the truth: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for Me.

-Abbey Nishimoto

Community Fellows Reflections: Sarah

Hello All!

                  Hoping and praying that this letter finds you well.  I am well into my fourth month of the Kingdom Causes Bellflower: Fellows program and it has continued to be quite a whirlwind.  To jog your memory, I am still living in a low-income area and reaching out to neighbors to create a type of community that we do not find as much these days.  We are striving to be a light for Jesus and share our faith with those around us.  I am learning more and more how many of our neighbors have been hurt by the Christians and turned off to going to church.  I am just hoping that we are able to shine light and project the great things about the Lord in some small way, and I know the best way to do that is by just praying that I become less and less.  Please join me in praying that my words and interactions are not from my own futile and foolish brain, but rather that the Lord would just step in and guide my every conversation

                  It has been a pretty crazy few months for me in several different areas.  The hospital is, as usual, very busy and exhausting, one of my best friends got engaged so we are planning lots of fun things for her, several friends and coworkers have either become pregnant or given birth, and I am getting to know some of my neighbors a little better.  I have been juggling a lot and learning even more in the last couple months.  I've been learning how to do laundry at the laundromat, how important bug spray is, how to live in a one bedroom apartment and sleep during the day, how to be kind to a neighbor who doesn't even know how to say positive words, how to say "no" to things when I have too much on my plate (although I am still really bad at turning down activities). The most interesting thing that I'm learning about this program is that it's not just something that I am doing; but rather, it is a part of who I am. When I signed on for this, in the back of my head, I this is viewed the whole program as an "after work is over I will do this and that and get to know my neighbors la la la" kind of deal.  No. That is not the case.  The reality of it is that this is my life 100% of the time.  It's not just something I can do when I have free time.  It is enmeshed in everything that I do.  It's not just a hobby or an after school program.  It is every time Lindsay and I go to our favorite restaurant and the owner now knows us by name.  It is mourning with our friend over the loss of a loved one.  It is the struggle of trying to park my big car in my tiny space when my neighbor does not leave me enough room. It is when the manager of the laundromat brings his customers a bottle of water because it's really hot outside.   It is real life.  It is hard and dirty and gritty, much like most relationships.  It is loving Jesus and, because He loves us, being able to love those around us.  I don't think love is meant to be easy.  It definitely was not easy for Jesus to suffer a barbaric death and it wasn't easy for a 16 year-old virgin to tell her parents and fiancé that she was somehow miraculously pregnant.  Now, I'm not trying to compare myself to those two, my point is simply that God calls us to do things that are hard for us so that we can reach for Him in the middle of trying to understand why life is so challenging.   

                  This verse has been my jam over the last few months as I struggle with balancing the challenges of living in a low-income area and working on a floor with very high acuity patients and many stressful nights.

"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." Peter 5:6-7

Thank you for your prayers and support.  Please continue to pray for the town of Bellflower.

Community Fellows Reflections: Lucy

Hello friends,

I am writing to update you on my experiences with the fellow’s program and life on Eucalyptus Avenue. I am right in the middle of my fourth month and it’s too scary how fast this year is going! I’m pleased to report that my disposition is still cheery and hopeful! However, I can also say that my mindset and heart are being challenged each and every day that I spend in this dynamic neighborhood.

Thus far I have had multiple opportunities to engage with the neighborhood girls who make our front porch (I guess you could call it) their imaginary classroom, stage or home. There are about 6 of them and they range from 1st grade through 7th. They are all so energetic and always greet us by name, which they usually yell. These girls have been a huge blessing because their attitudes towards us, has really facilitated conversation with their parents as well as the surrounding neighbors.

Just recently I got to sit in my neighbor's house while she gave me a haircut. This is her part time job, doing people’s hair by appointment. I got to listen to her story of coming to America, working, starting a family and eventually ending up in the apartment directly across from us. This time spent with her has been one of my most cherished experiences from the last four months. I got to listen to her describe her experiences, learn about her family through her eyes and truly learn about her heart’s passions. I thank God that he gave me this opportunity, and I want to pray that he allows me more of these unique conversations where I get to step into my neighbor’s comfort zone and hear them speak with out reservations.

I want to ask for your support in prayer and thank you so so much if you have been keeping me, Gabi, Janet, and Noemi in your prayers already. I want to ask specifically for prayer that I may continue to get to know my neighbors on a deeper level. That God continues to facilitate these relationships and that I rely on Him to show my neighbor’s Jesus’ love. I also want to ask for prayer in my hospitality. I want to open my doors to my neighbors but I want that to be in a manner that helps them get to know God. Lastly I want to ask prayer for my view on the rest of this year, prayer that I never forget that my neighbors are people with hearts that God created uniquely, not projects.

Thank you so so much,

Lucy Lopez

Community Fellows Reflections: Lindsay

Hello! It is November already and I'm finally able to wear a sweater; time rapidly flies by, and at the same time goes at a snail's pace. I pray time has been good to you if you're reading this blog post. It certainly has been to me.

First of all, thank you to everyone who not only prays for KCB but for the fellows in the Fellows Program. I feel it and appreciate it. God provides, protects, guides, and reveals His will in so many big and small ways. 

Christian Community Development is messy. I'm discovering the further into the program I get, the more I cannot compartmentalize my life- and I know this is good. Living life with others is rarely uncomplicated, neat and tidy, which does cause friction to my Dutch, CRC upbringing. (Amiright??? *nudge *wink...ugh) 

There is an element to this lifestyle which holds me even more accountable to myself, to my friends and community, and to my Lord. It is almost as if I'm choosing to live in a glass house to a large degree. And even though I'm making a metaphorical comparison, our neighbors have looked in our windows to see if we're home and want to chat, so... take that for what you will. 

Our neighbors. Night falls earlier so this tends to make it more difficult to be social on our property and in our neighborhood. I am now working almost full-time hours at InJoy Life Resources, which is a blessing, but causes me to feel a bit stretched thin. Time management... (Once again amiright???) Opportunities still come up and I'm ever grateful for the conversation and laughs I can have with one of our neighbors about her cats, her truck, or the basil plant I 'let' her adopt. Oh man. The stories and honest relationships that give me joy... Our property has few children on it, mostly strong, single women with full-time jobs, and as such, our experience has looked quite different from the girls on Eucalyptus.  I ask for prayers for more and more opportunities for walls to fall down and for relationships to become stronger. We want roots in these friendships.

Our Church. Bell One shares space with two other church bodies- the potential is so great! And since I was raised in this church's traditions, I am already equipped and comfortable there. (Can be both good and bad.) I ask for prayers to become an advocate for CCD ideas and actions at our church. They have welcomed me with open arms and each Sunday I meet someone new. It is already home! But please pray that the Lord guides these relationships and doesn't allow me to become too comfortable in the familiar. 

And finally, God has been so loving to me. IS so loving to me. He is lifting a magnifying glass to all areas of my life, and especially within my own heart and mind. To say there have been changes in these two areas is an understatement. God is rearranging me and mixing me up causing me to fully, 100%, rely on Him. THIS IS REALLY REALLY REALLY DIFFICULT. I can say I've trusted him and that I had faith, but in the past I've always had at least one foot on the ground in terms of control. This is not the case anymore. Lastly, I ask for prayers that this becomes the norm and not the exception. 

I love coffee, by the way. And I love meeting new people! Consider this an open invitation to chat and laugh together. Have a wonderful week!

Linds~

Community Fellows Reflections: Gabi

It’s crazy to think that we are already a quarter of the way through the Fellows Program. It has gone so fast, yet so much has happened.
        The first time we came to look at the apartment that we now live in, a little boy was playing baseball outside and we introduced ourselves and played a little bit with him. This simple interaction with him made it clear for all of us that this was the place we wanted to live in. We had no idea how many more kids lived here, but, in my mind, I thought, if one kid is willing to be outside and play with some folks he just met, I can’t imagine the relationships we could have with others who live here.
        There are so many kids that live in the immediate apartments around us, and for me, that is the greatest thing ever. I love coming home after work to the girls belting out Frozen songs and running around outside through puddles after a much needed rain. I’ve received many gymnastics lessons and have seen that little girls are much more agile than I am! Simply running around, tickling and playing games with all these kids is truly a blessing. I can’t imagine life here without them.
        One of the sweetest parts about this year so far has been the community that we have been accepted into and the incredible opportunity we have had to continue to grow in the already established relationships of families around us. It is truly becoming more and more like home. I’m so thankful for the chances Jesus is giving me to do normal, daily life activities with the people that I live with, and, inevitably, being able to listen to their stories and share Jesus’ love and truth with them.
        There truly is no greater way to experience and extend God’s love than to simply be with him and people. However, this “be”-ing is extremely difficult at times for me when there seems to be so much going on between work, school, church activities, etc. I am trying to learn how to live in Jesus’ rhythm of life, not my own fast-paced rhythm that often results in a discordant, exhausted life.
        I would so appreciate your prayers for my sensitivity to Jesus as I go about living life with my neighbors, roommates, classmates, coworkers and anyone else Jesus gives me the chance to spend time with. I hope to slow down and let Jesus lead me instead of trying to blaze the trail myself. God is so good and gracious, and I have experienced the realities of that in many, many ways these last few months. I trust that he will continue to work in our lives and the community he’s placed us in for His glory.