Stories behind the numbers

Awhile back, a friend of mine posted an article on poverty that addressed some shocking numbers. This article felt like a smack across the face when I read it because I had just come home from serving in our church food pantry. That day, I found out one of our clients was the grandmother of one of my daughter's friends.

That was a bitter pill to swallow, and really hard to capture in words. We had a great visit. She was kind and gracious, and I made a point to tell her to pass along a hello to her granddaughter (but that she didn't have to tell her where we had seen each other). Other than the fact that it took place in a food pantry, it was a pretty normal conversation for people connected through kids.

The people visiting pantries are real people, each with their own unique stories and situations. There are a lot of "there but for the grace of God" moments when I hear some people's stories. I feel like numbers on a page don't do justice to the situation. Really, to understand the depth of the problem, you have to meet the people face to face.

I have been blessed to do just that. I have the opportunity to serve in a pantry that has seen miraculous growth over the past few years. We have served 10 times the number of people so far in 2011 than we served in all of 2009, and three times the number we served in 2010. It has been a wild ride.
But, again, those are just numbers.

I wish everyone could meet those who are in need face to face. Here, in this space, I hope to introduce some of them to you.

Honestly, you probably won't like them all. I find some of the folks we serve challenging, and it would be disingenuous of me to leave those out. But I would hazard a guess that anywhere you go where there are relatively large numbers of people - work, social organization, even family gatherings - there will be some people that rub you the wrong way. God calls us to love our neighbors, and not just the lovable ones.

But you will probably meet someone here that reminds you of yourself, or your grandmother, or the guy in the next cubicle.

I hope you meet someone here that changes you.



Do justice, love kindness, walk humbly. Micah 6:8