As we celebrate Lent and consider what it means to hunger for Christ…
As we learn about the seventeen students and teachers killed in Florida…
As we try to fathom the statistics gathered on the opioid addiction in our country…

I’ve been thinking about my understanding of justice, mercy, and who deserves what.

A visitor attended our Sunday worship service at Tierra Nueva this week. He shared that he was homeless and he wanted to change his life. “I’ve been told that Tierra Nueva will welcome me.” Our staff didn’t “vet” him at the door. We don’t know if he ever skipped school, disrespected his parents, or stole from his friends. Nobody asked him if he had ever abused a wife or girlfriend, lied to his neighbor, or spread hatred and violence.

It’s inaccurate to say that none of that matters to us… but it’s partially true; we exist as a ministry in order to build relationships with sinners. As redeemed sinners ourselves, we gather in order to share Christ’s transforming love to His lost sheep. We exist to love bad people who “deserve” what they get. And we fight to correct the thinking that we are the creators of truth and justice.

Jesus came, died, and defeated death for the liars, the corrupt, the school shooters, the racist, the hypocritical, the self-righteous, and the addicts. Anything that we can hold against each other and ourselves crumbles under the power of Christ. Our World Belongs to God and our lives are owed to our Savior.

It is the Holy Spirit’s job to convict, God’s job to judge, and my job to love.” -Billy Graham

We are a team that welcomes the visitor to the Lord’s Table. We’re getting really good at receiving new members in our community, to assess needs and contact the appropriate agencies.
Our staff collaborates weekly, in prayer and ideas, around our community members, before breaking off into our respective roles–some of us hit the streets and meet with the homeless, the fresh-out-of-jail, and the traumatized. Others contact lawyers, build bridges between organizations, and write grants to fund our efforts.
I am really digging my role in sharing the efforts of the church, making our work more transparent and more effective. Your support allows me to continue doing so and I am grateful. May the name of the Lord be praised.