Editor’s note: Andy Cooke, a local pastor, is part of a group of congregations meeting, Sept. 10 to learn more about poverty in Augusta and resources that are available to address the problem. In this guest column, he explains how he became aware of the real, rather than the abstract, face of poverty in our city.
Do you ever feel like God is laughing at you? Not in a mean way, but in a loving way. Maybe it’s more of a divine smirk. The corner of God’s mouth is turned up as you are startled by what you say you believe.
I was with a group of church members who were meeting to talk about systemic poverty in our community and the ways that we might respond to it. We were reading the words of Jesus in Matthew 25. He was teaching his disciples who had asked him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing?” Jesus replied, “…just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”
We listened to these words, prayed and ended our meeting. As we walked out of the room, the conversation suddenly grew quiet. There was a homeless man sitting just outside the door. This was unusual for our church. Because of where we are located, we don’t often have homeless guests walk into our building. Where did he come from? How long had he been there? Had he heard us reading from Matthew 25?
Suddenly, I could feel the divine smirk. Rarely does the opportunity to do God’s Word come so close to hearing God’s Word. Would we be self-righteous hypocrites? Would we pepper this man with questions and judge him? Would we fill his ears with unsolicited advice and try to fix him until he finally walked away?
There is always a reason that someone is homeless. If you ask enough questions, then you can find that reason and feel better about yourself when you don’t help them. But the reason is only worth finding if you are going to do something about it.
I believe that there is a faithful way to respond to poverty, and I don’t always hit the mark. A faithful response involves both alleviating poverty (giving food) while working to eradicate it (asking why there is no food). Isaiah 1:17 says, “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.” We are holding these words alongside the words of Jesus as we take up the cause of those in our community who are facing systemic poverty.
On Saturday, Sept. 10, we are partnering with other Augusta congregations for an event that we are calling Take Up the Cause. We hope that many in our community will come and learn more about poverty and consider what a faithful response might be. We will meet at 10 a.m. at the Greene Street Mission Center at 1260 Ellis St., where we will pray, learn and respond together.
The CSRA Musicians and Directors Guild will lead us in a brief worship service. GAP Ministries will serve free “walking bag” lunches at 11 a.m. There will be interactive displays, resources, and other opportunities until 1 p.m. I hope that you will consider joining us for this event, even if only for a few minutes.
His name was Michael, by the way. We did take care of his immediate needs that night. I haven’t seen him again, and I doubt I ever will. But God is calling us to take up his cause, and we need your help.
Covenant Presbyterian Church
Andy Cooke is co-pastor at Covenant Presbyterian Church on Walton Way. Reach him at acooke@covenantaugusta.org
