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Wednesday, April 30, 2014

"Beyond The Paint"


"There's far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can't see now will last forever." ~2 Corinthians 4:18 (The Message)

When you begin to work on a house or drive through a neighborhood, what are the first things that come to mind? For many people, we see what’s on the outside and start to compare environments and houses to each other but is that truly all that is there? The Dallas Leadership Foundation is about leadership and building relationships however with everything comes projects but the projects aren’t just seen as a project and then you’re done but they are seen as a way to engage with others, build relationships, and show/ share Christ’s love to those being served.

In the end of June, we will be having a workday where we will be working on about 40 houses in 9 neighborhoods but right now we are in the pre-work stage and talking with the residents that own the homes. Today we were able to speak with the residents from 10 homes and with doing so; it became apparent that we need to be looking beyond the paint and beyond the walls of the homes. There is pain and hurt in many people’s lives and it seemed like at least half of the people we talked to recently this week have had a death in the family yet that would not have been apparent from the way some of them were acting and you wouldn't have been able to tell from the outside. It’s in those times that people need to be reminded of God’s love for them and that He is able to help them through the tough times in their lives. However, when looking on the outside, some of the houses aren’t in the worst shape but when you take the time to talk with the residents and get past the walls and paint then you will be able to reach out and be of encouragement and hope to those you come into contact with. It's then that you realise that the stories and what's going on goes beyond the paint and beyond what we can see.

It’s the same with people, many times we put up walls in our lives where we seem to be okay on the outside but on the inside we are hurting yet we want people to see the masks we put on rather than see the pain. Yet when we put up the walls and wear the masks there are times that we just wish that someone would see past the act and truly see beneath it all. We wonder if anyone will ever truly stop and ask how are we truly doing and take the time to truly get to know what’s going on… The same is true with houses, we are able to keep things clean and looking good on the outside yet once you walk inside the doors, then you get a better glimpse of what’s going on. You get an idea of how someone is living and what they are going through and when you take it a step further and engage in conversation with them then you can truly get to know them and their situation and are able to minister to them better and be the hope that they need and show them the love and light of Christ.

I have been a part of working on homes and doing service projects throughout high school and college and looking back I realize that very rarely did the group I was working with take the time to get to know those we were serving and truly get to know them. We only saw the exterior and “paint” but rarely ever went “inside” and have the chance to minister to the needs of those we were serving. Many times, we get so caught up in doing service projects and helping others and see it as something that we can check off of our list of things to do because we are Christians but then we are missing the entire purpose of being able to do the service project. If we only see it as a task then we forget about the relationship and about the person we are serving. We end up overlooking the person and seeing them as just a project rather than as a person and that’s not okay.

We need to start seeing what we do as ministry and being able to be the light and hope of Christ to others in this broken world and truly take the time to get to know someone and pray with them rather than see it as an agenda item and a box we can check off. We need to look beyond the paint that we can see and beyond the act that so many people put on get inside where we can see what is truly going on. It’s easy to get caught up in the business of things yet that shouldn’t be an excuse. We need to start seeing service projects and things we do as a way of engaging in relationships and getting to know someone so that we can get beyond what the eyes can see and get to where the soul is and what’s going on inside.

What meets the eyes can be deceiving but it’s what’s underneath and beyond the paint that we need to get to and bring the hope of Christ to. How is God calling you to look beyond the paint and beyond what meets the eyes and who is He calling you to reach out to and truly get to know rather than allowing what you see to deceive you? Someone may say they are okay but are they truly okay? A house may look in tact on the outside but once you get on the inside then is everything in tact or are things falling apart and needing a helping hand and the light of God?



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