The Roma Community
Twice a week we help our friends from YWAM do a kids club in the local Roma Community. The Roma (also known as gypsies, but that’s kind of derogatory) live in a separate walled community on the out skirts of Kazanlak. Upon walking through those walls for the first time we were bombarded with kids happily hugging us and grabbing our hands. Their smudged faces lit up as they chattered away in Bulgarian, walking us to the church and refusing to let go when we entered. These kids are outcasts, not accepted in regular Bulgarian society, yet they love so unconditionally and immediately. Every Monday and Thursday we get to experience this radical overflow of love as we sing songs, tell a Bible lesson, color pages and play games with the kids. However, their love for us isn’t what I learned the most from, but rather our love for them.
Here’s what I’ve learned from this kind of love: It’s easy. It’s so easy to walk into that community and love on those kids. Though they are filthy and smelly and have lice, it’s really easy to love on them for a few hours. As Americans, we see their living conditions and lack of communal acceptance and instantly reach out to them. Snap a picture or two for Instagram, put an 11n11 hashtag on it to remind people back home we’re loving the least of these. That’s easy! You know what kind of love is hard? Loving your teammate after they use all of the limited hot water so you get a cold shower, loving your teammate by walking half a mile with them to the grocery store, even though it’s freezing cold outside and you had a long day of ministry and you’re tired, loving your teammate when they have a horrible attitude and complain about everything. We were told community would be the hardest part of the Race, and it’s really ringing true for me this month. I’ve really had to check my attitude and even watch what I put up on social media. I would never want to portray a false view of my Race, to make it seem like I have everything together with loving the people I encounter when I can’t even love my own team well.
I’m called to love everyone equally, from sweet Roma kids to the people I’m walking through this season of life with. Jesus loves me regardless of how easy or hard it is, so I will do my best to do the same.
