Martin's Blog
Prayers and Conversations on Public Transportation / Feb 19, 09:34 AM
Ministry of prayer and presence
One of the many blessings and sometimes curses is taking the public transportation in Atlanta called MARTA. I get to work most mornings by taking the bus. It is not the most efficient or convenient way but it gets me there. I have been frustrated with it at times when a bus is running late or there is something wrong with the train and everyone is asked to get off and wait for the next one. However public transportation can offer some unique interactions with many different kinds of people. You can find rich, poor, black, and white all mixed together in a crowded bus or train. You hear people talking on the phone or with each other about their weekends or who they hooked up with (sometimes you hear too much detail). But you can also hear some personal stories about peoples’ struggles in life. I have had some very interesting experiences on the bus.
Once I had a great conversation with a Jamaican man who shared with me his experiences in the US and his take on our political and social situations and how God should play a part in it. He also shared some of his struggles from when he first moved to America and the situations he had to work through.
Another time while we were on our way home, Zeny and I began to talk with a woman on the bus after she saw a book we were reading called Jesus and the Disinherited (I suggest reading it). She began to share with us her story about how God has helped her be clean from drugs for almost 90 days and how she was in a rehab program. She shared her hope of having her 10 year old son come live with her again some time in the future. She showed us his picture and talked about how proud she was of him. We encouraged her and told her we would keep her in our prayers, as we got off the bus.
Another example was a few days ago when I overheard a phone conversation on the bus of a young mother with her two children talking to a friend. She was sharing about how she was broke and had no job or money right now and did not know what she was going to do. She did not have food in the fridge and was on her way to try and get her food stamps started up again. She also talked about how the father of her children wasn’t paying child support and might be going to jail soon. She was on the phone the whole time so I didn’t get a chance to talk with her and get her name or see if I could help so I prayed.
These experiences are sometimes great but many are sad and frustrating because you feel so helpless and you don’t know what to do. So you just have to pray and offer some encouragement. Though these stories are difficult to hear, I thank God for a chance to hear them. One of the problems that many of us Christians have today is that we have very little or no contact with the poor and oppressed. It might be because of where we live and who we interact with that we have limited contact with the poor. It might also be a fear of the poor that keeps us away, because we assume they will harm us or steal from us. As a result, we miss out on understanding them and getting the opportunity to experience compassion for others. Throughout the New Testament we read of Jesus having compassion on the poor and the sick but to do that He had to be WITH them. He was present with those in need. Many times we sing songs about wanting to be close to God or wanting to be a witness for God. The answer is to be with the least of those in society. God says that “what you do to the least of these you do unto me”.
I hope what I wrote does not come off as prideful like Zeny and I are “better” because we are experiencing these things. Really it is out of humbleness that we have realized our self made bubbles that have kept us from experiencing compassion and a chance to serve others. We hope that this blog encourages you to volunteer at places that put you in contact with those whom society has labeled useless or a burden. That maybe you can take the bus once in a while in your city and experience a conversation with someone and share each others’ life experiences and let compassion and grace flow out of it. You never know, God just might use someone on the bus or at the local homeless shelter to speak to you.
0 Comments
Leave a Comment...
Read more of Martin's Blogs.
