Everyday I see the poor, I see the hungry, I see the afflicted. It's not just here in Thailand, it's in America too. I have this amazing privilege to work with a ministry that truly seeks justice. God is teaching me so much through all of this. I am learning more and more about prostitution and the not so simple details that surround it.
Walking to work everyday and walking around the city I see the poor, the hungry, the afflicted. The particular people I am referring to right now are those who sit on the sidewalks asking for money.
Sometimes it's a women with her infant child in her arms, other times it's a man with missing limbs or a blind man being led with a string by his mother while singing with a microphone and speaker. I think my mindset might come from my American culture. When I see a homeless person at home, lets say standing to the side of the freeway entrance by Tyler or the exit by Adams, I naturally think 'if I give him money, he will use it for drugs or alcohol and if I offer him food, he won't want it anyways'. To be honest I don't know enough about homeless people to be so critical or have any judgment on the way most people think. But I am bringing that up because I find myself confused.
We read in the bible over and over again about feeding the hungry and caring for the poor, but when do we start doing that? What does that mean for my current context? I do believe strongly that in a way working with NL is doing that, but does that mean it's okay to ignore these physically hurting people all around me? Because, as selfish as I am, I don't want to not do anything. It makes me sick to see a 5 month old baby in the arms of their mother on the street at 11 o’clock at night. And I hate that I am just another pair of shoes and legs that these people see.
