Good Friday

Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” Matthew 1:41

Working for a non-profit, you often use and hear the word "compassion." However, on this Good Friday, I wondered what would happen if I prayed, "Lord, today, for one day, open my eyes and allow me to see others as Christ saw them."

I truly believe that we, as humans beings, are incapable of fully seeing with the eyes of Christ. Not only because our pride too often gets in the way but also because the burden of that compassion would be unbearable.

When Christ looked out over the multitudes of those gathered to hear Him speak, He didn't just see their motives and their attitudes, the secrets of their hearts. He saw beyond what they were to what they had been. To what they could and should have been. He saw them as children, full of potential and possibilities. He saw the gifts they had been given. And how those gifts had been squandered. He saw the paths they had chosen. And how every step had only taken them further beyond even the hope of rescue.

The scars of sin...what ugly marks they must leave on the human soul. And those are the scars that Christ took upon Himself, for us, on the darkest day in human history.

Praise God that in the moment when the full ugliness of man's heart was revealed to His creator, Christ did not turn away. He spread His arms in surrender and bore the weight of that ugliness and the consequences of our sin on the cross. He dragged that darkness into the grave and left it there when He rose again.

So that we could know rescue. Because Jesus Saves. Only Jesus Saves.

But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:8-13

http://www.blueletterbible.org/knowgod.cfm

All in a day's...not working...

Saturday was a very interesting day. Interesting in that I headed out into the gray, grisly morning with a carefully prepared list of "errands" to run. None of those errands involved work, well, one or two of them did, but most of them were personal errands.

First stop was my bank, where I had questions about my account. I was told to wait for the lady in the office, and while speaking with her, the conversation turned to my place of employment, the City Rescue Mission. "You work with Mark!" The lady said, and I wondered how she knew Mark. From television. I admit, I took the opportunity to brag on my boss (how often can a person do that?) and was pleased at the realization that people are beginning to recognize, not just Mark, but also the Mission.

The City Rescue Mission has existed in Lansing since 1911; our buildings on Michigan Avenue have housed our ministry since 1948. Our Jesus Saves Cross, the sign that hangs over the chapel building and is the focal point of our logo, has lit the night sky for over six decades, long before Mark was even born. But when I began working for the Mission in 2004, there was a surprising number of people who didn't know the Mission existed or why it existed.

It is so gratifying to reclaim a sense of awareness in our community, not just so supporters know that we need their help but also so that those in need know that we are here to help them. Rather a tongue twister, but it all comes down to "helping us help others." For nearly 100 years, the Mission has had the opportunity to meet physical and spiritual needs of men, women, and children. That legacy would never have been possible without the compassion and generosity of our community.

It may be rather startling when your boss' name comes up in conversation with a random stranger, especially on your day off, but it's worth it if the message connected with his name is about the Mission, the needs of those we serve, and the truth behind the words over our door: Jesus Saves.