Showing Up

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 1 John 4:7

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. John 13:34

Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 1 Peter 4:8

With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love. Ephesians 4:2

When I lived in Iowa, I volunteered for an organization called Love in the Name of Christ. The organization helped those in the community in a variety of ways, such as providing gently used furniture and clothing, budget mentoring, grief support. I was asked by my pastor to become a budget mentor, helping an individual or family struggling financially to better track spending, saving, etc.

Those we met with were referred to as our “clients”. I volunteered with this organization for 7 years, working with individuals and families through the years. Over a period of two years, Rodolfo & Violeta were my clients. Rodolfo was undocumented and worked briefly for a farmer before misunderstanding a command and jumping into a hay baler that amputated his leg. Rodolfo’s struggles had much to do with medical expenses, lawsuits, and the fact that he was undocumented. I don’t speak Spanish, so communicating was a challenge. In the beginning, a high school Spanish student sat in on our sessions, but gradually he stopped coming. Additionally, it was a challenge simply coming up with what to discuss. It was a time in my life when I felt 1) incredibly ineffective but also 2) that I was doing well just by showing up.

I thought back to my time with this family recently while reading a novel on immigration. I certainly don’t miss the feeling of not being helpful, or even not understanding what I could do to be a good volunteer for the organization. There are times in our lives when we need to just appreciate that we are not being graded (as in school) for our accomplishments! However, I always felt that God was with me, guiding me, showing me what to do. And what was that? Well, often just offering Christian compassion and “showing up”. I am reminded of this when I read the essay: “Why You Should Always go to the Funeral”. Deirdre Sullivan says: ““Always go to the funeral” means that I have to do the right thing when I really, really don’t feel like it. I have to remind myself of it when I could make some small gesture, but I don’t really have to and I definitely don’t want to. I’m talking about those things that represent only inconvenience to me but the world to the other guy.”

So, do the hard thing that's often the easy thing: just show up. Show God's love to others by being present. 

Prayer: Since you are with me, I can do hard things. I can show your love to others and “show up” when people in my life may need to see evidence of your love in the world. Help me to show up even when I don’t feel like it. Amen.

Donna Gustafson