Poverty and community are two things that have been enveloping a lot of my thoughts here in the Philippines. As a result my next few blogs will likely be many of the things running through my mind on the subjects. They may or may not be coherent, fascinating, or valuable in any way; but if nothing else, please check out the web site (www.becomeless.com) we put up in an effort to have our supporter join us in simply blessing people who are in need. You can also plug in to many of the ministries we have made contact with and consider your own mission journeys or financial support to anyone of these contacts. It’s good stuff. We already have recieved some funds and we are planning on blessing a family here with chickens to hopefully create some kind of income for them. We are excited to see what God does with it.
“It’s no wonder that the footsteps of Jesus led from the tax collectors to the lepers. I truly believe that when the poor meet the rich, riches will have no meaning. And when the rich meet the poor, we will see poverty come to an end.” – Shane Claiborne
It was one of those days where you can’t help but be excited for what’s about to take place. It reminded me of the way I felt on Valentine’s Day this year when a group from our church spent the evening at a rented out restaurant and served a meal to women living on the streets. I woke up that morning just knowing that God’s love was going to be irresistible. And it was. It was the best Valentine’s day I’ve ever had. It was one of those days that you felt as if the world were set right for an evening. One of those days that heaven seemed that much closer to earth.
This last Saturday a group of about 20 people wealthy people brought their kids to the children’s home that we have been working with for the past three weeks. When I arrived at the children’s home you could see that there was tension in some of the wealthy people. The wealthy kids didn’t really know how to interact with the children’s home kids, and they weren’t really sure about the safety of playing on a trampoline with a giant hole in it. I’m sure the same would be true if we had brought all the children from the children’s home to one of their houses. But as the day went on the tension seemed to melt away. Our team played with the kids and struck up conversations with the new visitors. The kids started being kids and they began to feel more comfortable being around each other.
Eventually the Children’s home kids gathered and gave the rich folks what they could offer them in the form of some dancing and singing. It was priceless.
The day continued and the wealthy people were taken on a tour of the surrounding squatter residences in the slums surrounding the children’s home. They were shown the missionary home that we are staying in, and the wall that was just built to get some of the sewage off the street. They were also shown the community center that was built to be used as a school for orphans and families that cannot afford the public schools here. Throughout the tour some of the rich folk were very interested, some were very uncomfortable, and some decided it was time leave… so they left.
As it came to the end of the day, everyone went inside the Children’s home and gathered around the Christmas tree. Under the tree were shoes. The rich folk had bought shoes for all the children. For many of them it was the first pair of shoes they owned. One by one they came up to receive the said shoes and gave the gifter a big hug. As everyone got up to leave it was interesting to see the expression on every ones face. The Children were intently fixated on their new shoes, while the rich folk seemed to be either smiling or crying. They seemed like they were more touched than the children who actually got the gift. The 
awkward tension of the day had completely dissipated. Many of the rich folk want to make their visits a regular thing, just to be with the kids. Getting new shoes is an exciting thing. But to me it’s an even more exciting thing to see the face of a child who gets the shoes. It’s way more exciting to love someone knowing that you likely will get nothing in return… and it’s exciting to be completely ok with that. It’s exciting when the poor meet the rich, because it only takes a little time to realize that we are all human in this thing. We are all in the same boat when it comes down to it. We all want to be loved, we all want to see the good in the world shine forth. It’s true that when the rich meet the poor, wealth no longer has a meaning. And when the poor meet the rich, poverty seems to fade into the background.
