The Blessings in 2022

Jackson, MS has been in the news quite a bit lately. For local residents, many of the issues that are being brought to national attention are not new items. Jackson is a common conversation topic. This conversation tends to have notes of frustration or even anger. Sadly, many people have even given up hope.

There was quite a bit of frustration in Christ’s day as well. Israel was occupied by Rome. The average Jewish citizen had quite a bit of understandable frustration in the state they found themselves. I can imagine there was quite a bit of party gossip and water cooler frustration in 30 BC Israel. The Israelites were desperate for hope; they were looking for a messiah. The Messiah that came looked nothing like they thought, and he did not do any of the things they thought he was “supposed” to do.

Christ was not a military leader. He did not lead a rebellion against Rome. He sat with widows, children, and fishermen. He sat and listened. Jesus showed that the physical condition was not unimportant, but that the spiritual condition far outweighed the problem of the Roman occupation. The condition of the heart was far more dire. He used tangible means to open doors to talk about deeper heart issues.

In Jackson, we have the opportunity to meet many tangible needs in our community as well. Many elderly, children, and struggling citizens that we work with are looking for hope. Many people are tired and frustrated. We are able to provide tangible help in the form of groceries for families struggling in our community. Pallets and truck loads of water have been given out in the past weeks. We will provide groceries for over fifteen thousand people this year. Meeting tangible needs helps us address real issues opening the door to talk about a greater issue that we are passionate about. There is an answer to the frustration and anger. There is hope, but it may not be in the form we expect.

Many parents and children also find themselves frustrated. There are amazing educators in our city, but it is not news that our public school system faces many obstacles. We have the opportunity to come alongside elementary students and provide literacy and Bible lessons for each child in our program. We have had 215 children participate in one of our education programs this year.

Whether it is summer camp or afterschool, we have opportunities to build relationships with and hear the stories of children in our city.

There is an answer to the frustration in our city. The answer may look a little different than the one for which many people are looking for. The answer looks a lot like pulling up a chair and talking with real people about real problems. The answer looks a lot
like reading with a child or handing a bag of groceries to an elderly

person. The answer looks like neighbors being willing to engage their community with the love of Christ.