As we sat and ate lunch at the Nehru Zoological Park, the 5 of us white people felt like we were the ones in an exhibit. The Indian masses were stopping to stare at us and take pictures of us doing nothing special.
It was hard for some of us to remain calm and respectful as indignation rose up in us. We had to protect the 30-something school girls that we were enjoying the day with.
As my team walked around the zoo trying to do crowd control, I noticed one of the girls, Lahaxmi, wasn’t wearing any shoes. My first thought was, how disgusting! I was instantly humbled by one of my teammates who made me remember that her family probably didn’t have the resources to afford or find shoes for her; or maybe her parents didn’t care. Indians go without shoes all the time, especially the ones in the villages. But at the same time they also try to be very clean when they take off their shoes outside before entering a house or even some shops.
As I saw this 8 year old girl walking barefoot around a dirty zoo and then noticed more girls throughout the day taking off their shoes and abandoning them, I also saw one girl named Shanti unyieldingly walking in her shoes that had a broken strap even when her feet were falling out.
I was perplexed. I was disheartened. I was piqued.
God’s Words came flooding to my mind right then.
“Because of where you come from, you think to own shoes is a right, not a privilege. Just because this place is different doesn’t mean you have to be feeling these things for them. You think they should have them, but I know their needs and I am taking care of them.”
“They need me. They need a Savior. And they need the kind of unwavering hope that only I can give. Material things are not important to me in my Kingdom. Stop focusing on the physical world and their lack. Start focusing on my world and the intangibles that will last for eternity.”
Colossians 3:2
“Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things.”
Matthew 6:28-33
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
I’m thankful for those girls who are the embodiment of Matthew 6:28-33. I was worrying for them about things that didn’t even matter and they didn’t even seem to care about, either! Maybe these girls from the slums and rural villages of India were teaching me what kind of mindset I should be approaching life with. Even when God doesn’t provide these material gifts to us, we know that God has provided for our needs. And through the World Race, I’m learning what we actually need in this life. They are the intangibles that we sometimes forget about because we are so involved in this world. Let us remember to keep our eyes on heavenly things and not the things of this world.
