I’ve been having a hard time trying to get another post out. So, this morning, I prayed about it and God answered in a big way.
I work in a mental health clinic that caters to the Medicaid population. This week has been particularly trying. Yesterday, we had a client come in for the walk-in clinic and do drugs in the bathroom. Today, I was in no mood for any shenanigans.
We started the walk in clinic today with the normal type of people that we normally see. My last client of the day came in giving the impression of being drunk. He couldn’t write out his social security number for me. As I helped him with his paperwork, he began to tell me about being homeless and hungry. He didn’t have an address to put on his paperwork and he didn’t even have a phone.
I walked through the intake with him as well as I could. He told me that he wanted a payee (a third party to take care of his money) so that he could pay his bills and have a place to live.
I like to think that I’ve been working in social/human services long enough to be impervious to the most pitiable people. Not because I don’t want to sympathize with them, but because I have to be able to function in the face of that hopelessness. But when I gave this man his appointment and told him that we’d get him some help and he cried, I almost cried with him.
It was like I was looking at myself through Jesus’ eyes. Lost, dirty and broken, trying to do everything on my own and knowing that I can’t. Begging for help and knowing that I’m not worthy to receive it. Being grateful beyond belief when someone is willing to get their hands dirty to help me.
That was a really powerful object lesson. I’m thankful and excited to go on this mission trip because the whole world needs to know that there is hope. That Jesus made the way for them to be clean and healed and whole.
