H2o devos sj 120109 Ca(red)
World Aids Day
“Come gather together you children who wander
Looking for dreams that the whole world has squandered
You’ve lost them you’ve sold them for pockets of gold
And you long to come in from the cold…Oh Sing
Joy joy joy in the morning
Joy joy in the afternoon
Joy joy joy for the child is born
This night the promise is given to you”
Sing Joy by Peter Mayer
http://www.petermayer.com/AUDIO/SPA/SingJoy.mp3
24 years ago I was serving Immanuel Lutheran Church in Kansas City, Missouri. Some things were different back then. Some things are still the same. One day a young man who obviously was down on his luck and quite sick asked to speak to me. He was on the road. When I spoke to him he wouldn’t make eye contact with me. He handed me a note. It was from an Episcopal priest in California who basically stated the sad details surrounding this young man’s situation. He was very sick. He was trying to get back home to a town in the East. He was the prodigal son looking to patch things up before he died. He had AIDS. Would I assist him in this journey?
As I said earlier, some things were different back then. Some things are still the same. I had at that time back in 1985 been visiting young men at the Kansas University Medical Center who were also diagnosed as having Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. There was lots of confusion, prejudice, fear and sadness. I indicated to the young man that I would assist him with food and travel expenses. As I invited him to make himself at home, he took off his jacket. I was stunned as soon as I saw his T-shirt. Printed in bold type was the word “Yeshua.” I asked him if he knew what that name meant. He indicated, that someone had given him the t-shirt and he was just wearing it. I told him the word meant “Jesus” in Hebrew. My mind immediately thought of how God has a sense of humor. I was taken to Revelation 3:20, “Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with me.” I thought to myself, “thank you God, for giving me a sign.” Like the folks in Matthew 25 sometimes we don’t see Jesus when he is standing right in front of us.
A couple of people who I am blessed to call friends are Dr. Donald Messer and Julie White. Don is the founder of the Center for Church and Global Aids. http://www.churchandglobalaids.org/ Julie is a member at Bethany Lutheran and the founder of One Mother www.Onemother.org
Now these two have “ca(red) so much that they’ve jumped into this whole pandemic of AIDS and see Jesus in the midst of it all. Like all the RED things going on they along with many of you as www.joinred.com suggests are:
incREDible, inspiRED
adoRED and have lots of streetcRED.
I am very proud of the efforts of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can learn more about this ministry by going to
http://www.elca.org/Our-Faith-In-Action/Justice/Poverty-Ministries/HIV-and-AIDS.aspx
If you are wanting to get involved, I pray that you check out the Center of Church and Global Aids and ONE MOTHER. You’ll be glad you did. And most important of all, the people who are so in need will be glad you did, too.
Let’s share the gift we’ve been given,
“for the child is born
This night the promise is given to you”
Sing Joy,
Rtg
PS, today is a good day to wear RED. I’ve got my chuckie T’s out and Sue Ann has her Nine West out!
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