Jesus keeps showing up at our back door unannounced in the form of a 4'9" Mayan woman with no front teeth. He's going by the name Isabel and has a deviously-cute baby named Norma slung over his back. You wouldn't believe how loud he knocks and how persistent he can be with his knocking. The man will simply not go away! In fact, he just left a few minutes ago. Let me be perfectly honest with you...Jesus is really starting to tick me off!
His visits always frustrate me and leave me feeling taken advantage of. He started coming around in October. At first he only wanted money and seemed upset with me when I would instead hand him eggs, bread and milk. But now that's it's Christmas time and all he's been hanging around town more, so we seem to see him everywhere we go. He wants me to buy his baby groceries and take him to the health clinic. That cleverly-disguised Jew sure does have a way of getting under my skin...he asks for more than I want to give, he makes me feel guilty about the money I have, and pulls me away from important things I need to do just so I'll notice him everytime he comes around. Errrrgggg!
Even though I talk about Jesus a lot as a pastor, for some reason there is something in me that is simply rebelling against him barging into my life like this. His mere presence in Isabel is forcing me to re-examine my relationship with the poor I see day-to-day and what my responsibility is to them as someone with money, resources and education. Not to mention the lesson he's trying to teach me about the mysterious joy of being taken advantage of. I'm probably just mad because Jesus is making me put my money where my mouth is. Maybe I'll learn one day, but until then I'd better get to bed because tomorrow I'm taking that annoying carpenter from Bethlehem to the pharmacy early in the morning to get him some meds...
Peace,
Jay
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment