The People of God at Their Best

I just got back from a week in Mississippi with a team of folks from town who were rebuilding houses five years after Katrina demolished communities on the Gulf Coast. There were thirty-three of us from the five Methodist churches in town (plus two token Baptists whom we elected as honorary Methodists for the week). We worked on four different houses in various stages of completion. We worked hard, ate well, had great fun. Oh, did I mention that we paid our own way down there?

If you're reading this and are not connected to the church you may wonder: "Is there still Katrina damage in Mississippi?" Indeed there is, and except for a few Lutherans, the Methodist Church is the only denomination with a significant presence still working on recovery. In fact, the United Methodist Church is the third largest builder of homes in Mississippi over the last few years.

Another question: "Why would anyone pay their own way to go and work for free to provide homes for people in Mississippi?" The short answer is this - It's the kind of thing Jesus would do. In 2 Corinthians, chapter 8, the apostle Paul says something about Jesus becoming poor so that by his poverty we might become rich. There are few of his followers who are willing to do the same for others, but at the very least we are often willing to share out of our abundance to lift people out of desperate situations. And when we do we are being the kind of people Jesus wants us to be, the church at its best. We offer generosity to others because we recognize the graciousness of God toward us. We offer generosity out of our best intentions. But more often than not, what we receive is worth more than what we have given. We receive satisfaction. We receive the gratitude of others. We receive blessings for which there is no way to attach monetary value. We give out of our abundance, but we end up receiving more than we give. That's one of those mysterious equations that followers of Jesus can never quite solve, but which almost everyone of us has experienced.

Anyway, there's an estimated two years worth of work still to be done in Mississippi. We'll be sending a team next year. I suspect there will be more people going next time. Sharing love tends to be contagious. If you'd like to join the people of God at their best, you are welcome to come with us. . . God's Peace!