Matt Schnarr
Why I'm doing Mission Year
My name is Matt Schnarr and I am 22 years old. I just graduated from Baylor Universtiy with a degree in Communications.
The Lord has given me some amazing opportunities this past year and opened my eyes to a world that is in desperate need of love and justice. I hope to continue my passion for serving others during this coming year.
If we don’t struggle, then we cannot connect… I truly believe God put us on this planet to build relationships with one another and I hope to share in the struggle with those suffering in the city. With a heart open to teach and, more importantly, be taught I’m excited to see where God takes me this year. I want to be able to join people as they celebrate their joys and as they grieve their losses, and through my actions I hope to share God’s amazing love where ever I go.
About Mission Year
Mission Year is a year long urban ministry program focused on Christian service and discipleship. We take teams of young people, place them in an area of need, and help them to serve people and create community. We are committed to the command of Jesus to “love God and love people,” by placing the needs of our neighbors first and developing committed disciples of Christ with a heart for the poor. Learn more about our first year program…
Matt Schnarr's Blog
thoughts... / Nov 1, 09:27 PM
I believe it is obvious that Jesus did not come to save the healthy, but instead the sick. I have always thought that God does have a special concern for the poor, but many times that can translate into “God loves the poor more than the rich.” I have wrestled with that statement for a while now, because deep down I know that God sent his Son to free the oppressed and heal the sick and scripture is consumed with passages affirming Gods love for those who suffer and are in need, but at the same time I know that God loves everyone. In attempts to address the “God loves the poor more” statement, I have always thought about it like a parent who has one child that is sick. It is not that they love that child any more than their other children, but they do have a special concern for that sick child and may even give them more attention and care until that sick child is well. I see God the same way; it is not that He loves the poor and sick more than others, but He is a God of justice and wants to see those people brought up from their sufferings. Since God has such compassion for the poor, and we are called to imitate Christ, than we too are to have compassion for the poor. With the word compassion literally meaning “to suffer with”, then God is calling us as Christians to enter into the lives of the poor and marginalized so that we can learn from them and them from us, in hopes of us all becoming one in Christ.
Being immersed in my neighborhood this past month has shed new light on the idea of justice and God’s redeeming power. As I get to know my neighbors and my eyes are opened to the injustices that trap them and try to hold them down, the stories I am reading in Exodus have new meaning. Seeing how God promises to come to the rescue to those who are being oppressed gives me hope when I see my neighbors struggling, maybe not with slavery like the Israelites, but by the systems of society that keep them down. God hears the cries of those in need and He always keeps His promises.
Something that I have been thinking about a lot lately is the idea of truly needing God. Many times when we encounter the poor we have the cliché comment that sounds something like “they are so happy yet they have so little”. While that statement usually irks me, it does hold some truth. Why is it that those with so little seem to be so connected to God? Is it because they have nothing else to rely on besides Him? I often shudder at the number of “safety nets” that I have in my life that help ME stay in control. All of those things that are built in my life to secure personal success inhibit God from taking control. If we always have these comforts and securities around us, we will never truly need God and therefore never truly understand His grace and love for us. No wonder the poor are so “happy”; they actually have to have faith! I am not saying we all have to be poor to experience God, but we should pay attention to the safety nets in our lives that are just our meager attempts to control our lives instead of letting God intervene. When we try too hard to protect our own lives, we are in turn negatively affecting those who are already suffering and marginalized. What we do affects others.
God repeatedly reminds the Israelites to remember their time of oppression in Egypt. He reminds them of their time as slaves to keep them humble. The theme that seems to stick out the most to me in these passages is God’s call to not get too comfortable. After God frees the Israelites from the wrath of Egypt, they soon forget to rely on God. It seems to me that so many people (including myself) only call upon God when we need something or when times are tough. If we call on God to save us from our troubles but then fail to recognize that it was truly Him who saved us, then we are unable to have compassion on others who are oppressed. God rebukes His people for mistreating other aliens and reminds them that they were just like those aliens when they were in Egypt. Pride was allowed to take control. When we start to believe that we have any control in saving ourselves, then we limit God’s love and power and thus make it more difficult for us to see his love in others.
Just some thoughts I have been having recently… I am taking a graduate course through Eastern University this year in “The Theology of Poverty.” This blog came from one of my journals I wrote for the course.
Love you all!
-Matt
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Little moments of joy... / Sep 18, 08:36 PM
Hello Again! It has been another incredible week, full of up and downs, struggles and joy, and lots of learning. Again, I could write pages and pages of little stories that have happened to me and the way God has been moving this week but I don’t have the time nor energy, so I will just give you one again…
Yesterday we were outside playing with some kids from our block. The rain from earlier in the day had washed the street clean and provided a new blank canvas for side walk chalk drawings. Soon we started to hear the sounds of guitar and singing, which stood out against the typical bumping of bass which is usually heard from our street (which I also love to hear). Intrigued by the soft melodies, my housemate and I, Alicia, took two of the little girls to find the source of these unusual sounds. We walked a little bit up the street and came across one of our neighbors on her front porch playing her guitar. We stopped and asked if we could sit and listen for a while and she nodded in compliance. So as the four of us sat on the steps of her porch listening to her songs, Elasia, the 6 year old that lives across the street from us, climbed into my lap and held my hand as we both swayed to the music. Life was simple and full. In that brief moment, there were no worries, no stresses, nothing. It was a beautiful reminder of true joy; life as it should be. I want to have more of those moments this year, but for now I will just praise God for those moment He has already given me.
Just a quick side note… I found out where I will be working for the year and I am so excited about it. I will be working at a place in Downtown Atlanta that reaches out to the homeless and marginalized called Cafe 458. It is an arm of a larger organization called Samaritan House Atlanta. I will be working in the cafe, which feeds the clients in the program lunch everyday. However, unlike most soup kitchens or food distribution ministries, Cafe 458 is set up like a normal restaurant where the clients come in and we seat them and then take their orders and serve them their food, all the while treating them with the utmost respect and dignity. I will also be working in the kitchen, preparing the food and then helping clean up. I am really excited to get to interact with the clients in the program each day and also get to know the other people working with me. I will also be working in our neighborhood in a place called the South Atlanta Marketplace and in an after school program at our church. I am really excited about all the opportunities that are available for me through these different service sites. So much to learn!
That’s all for now! I hope all of you are doing well and loving life!
-Matt
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There Goes the Neighborhood! / Sep 15, 03:15 PM
I feel like I have 1000 things to write about but I just can’t write about it all right now, So I will just pick one. More to come.
As we were walking home from our day, we passed an elderly African American man on the street. Upon one glance at us 3 young white kids he jokingly remarked “Uh oh, there goes the neighborhood!”. Although I knew he said it as a joke, it made me really think… What do people think when they see us in the neighborhood?
It always bothers me when I think about the idea of me being here to “help” the people in my neighborhood. By saying I am here to help them I am first assuming they need me and thus putting myself above them. That is not what I want at all. This fear is almost paralyzing. I know that if I just love them like Jesus did, it won’t matter what I call what I am doing though. I just am here to be part of community with them; to walk along side my neighbors, learning from them along the way. I want to empower people to help themselves. I don’t want to do things for them. I really hope and pray that I can make that desire clear to my neighbors because sometimes I am scared I will just make things worse. I know that I just need to get over it and remember that God is bigger than that and can use even my mess ups for his glory. I just know I need to DO something. Not moving is NOT an option.
I mean i realize that I do have to be sensitive to the fact that we are still outsiders in our neighborhood (despite the overwhelming welcome we have already received) and we must try our best to understand this new culture we live in before we try to “fix” it out way. Because our way might not be the right way. Instead of thinking that we are bringing God into the neighborhood, we should be looking for where God is already at work in our communities. God is here already. I just have to be open to seeing Him there.
This quote really sums up my desire for my year:
“Go to the people
Live among them
Learn from them
Love them
Start with what they knew
Build on what they have
But of the best leader,
when their task is done
the people will remark;
“We have done it ourselves!”
I really want this to be the echo of my life this year…teach me how God!
-Matt
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Welcome to Atlanta! / Sep 1, 02:26 PM
Well, I finally am here! I can’t believe it! Arrived in Atlanta on Wednesday and have been going non-stop since we arrived. I moved in to my house, went to my new church, explored the city, tackled the public transportation system, started my own moving service and met so many amazing new neighbors…and it has only been 3 days!
The rest of my team arrives on Thursday and I can’t wait for them to come! Pray for their safe travels!
From the moment I arrived here in Atlanta, it has just felt so right. I mean, I have been completely uncomfortable most of the time, but I absolutely love this place. I fell like I am going to be able to learn so much from so many different places; from my neighbors, my new roommates, my church, and so much more. I am ready to learn. from everyone.
I have a lot of my mind right now, but I think I need a little more time to process. But I just wanted everyone to know that I am here and well (very well). Thank you all for your prayers and I will try to update again soon after my team arrives!
Love you all!
-Matt
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