Backyard Brokenness

When we think of brokenness, we often think of shoddy homes and dirty people. You imagine the beggar you pass every day on the street corner, the hungry children you send Christmas shoeboxes to in the winter, and the bad side of town that you always avoid. When we gear up for a mission trip, this is what we expect to see: physical brokenness. In fact, many are even disappointed when they travel far away to serve those in need and the people don't appear to be in as much need as they had expected.

Here in Moore, some people come expecting to see flattened streets, covered in debris from the devastating tornadoes that have passed through. However, this cleanup was mostly finished long ago immediately after the tornado hit. Homes are rebuilt, schools start back up, and life appears to return to normal. Sometimes, this leaves volunteers disappointed. We always want to see the difference we are making in others' lives, but sometimes that difference can't be seen in a simple photograph of a new house or a smiling child.

Spiritual brokenness is another type of brokenness that cannot be seen with the human eye. For some foolish reason, we often assume that physical brokenness is somehow reflective of one's spiritual brokenness. This correlation not only leads to dangerous stereotypes about those in material need, but also causes us to forget about the spiritual brokenness of more materially well-off people, such as our neighbors, coworkers, and even ourselves. We assume that those who have it all together on the outside follow suit on the inside, when often it is just the opposite.

Although I have had a growing passion to serve the materially poor in inner-city neighborhoods, God has continued to call me into ministry in middle-class American suburbs. At times I have felt disappointed, wondering why God would not use me "more." I, too, want to see a physical difference made in someone's life, but Jesus has opened my eyes to the deep brokenness of the everyday person living at the end of the cul-de-sac. No matter what socio-economic class one may fall in, every human being has the same spiritual deprivation that can only be satisfied by the grace of Jesus. This is the brokenness to which God has called us to bring hope.

Amidst the newly built homes in Moore is the occasional boarded up house, abandoned after being damaged in the tornado. Some of the trees hold three-year-old debris in the leaves and the branches. There are always the physically broken who need help. Then there are beautiful, two-story, brick homes to which we pull up to begin our week's work. We build a new shed in their backyard or layer the house in a fresh coat of paint. See, insurance may cover the rebuilding of a home, but it doesn't cover the rebuilding of a shed, or a new coat of paint, or even the same size house in which someone originally lived. These projects provide the finishing touches to the renewal after the storm. They allow homeowners to feel at peace, as their lives finally return to normal.

Through our work here in Moore, we get to give out God's grace in all sorts of ways to all sorts of people. Jesus doesn't abandon, but he also doesn't restore just halfway. His grace covers every area of our life, inside and out. The work projects our teams are completing bring peace, relief, and dignity back to homeowners. The gospel gives peace, relief, and dignity to everyone. Jesus is using this community as a training ground to teach us how to live our mission not only in areas of material need, but right back at home where our friends, families, and neighbors need to know Christ just as much as those here.

We are so thankful for the teams coming this summer who will plant seeds of God's grace in this city, and we are so excited for more to come in the following weeks!

"Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers."
Galatians 6:10

LEARN MORE | Bring your team on a Mission Trip in 2017!