Tears dried by the years

Today I have a meeting downtown and I rode my bike to a coffeehouse downtown. For some reason, this morning as I made my way downtown I was struck more than usual by the faces of the people who tend to populate Colfax. I saw the temp agency full of workers getting ready to start their day, hoping for a good job with a good day's pay. I saw people standing in the street, and I passed by people walking nowhere.

I spend a lot of time on Colfax, but this morning for whatever reason, these things stood out to me much more than usual. Some words came to mind as I rode, so I opened my computer to write them down, then read today's chapter of Proverbs, which tied right into what I was thinking.

I stopped today to see people instead of see through them.
Behind vacant stares I see a life lived through many hard years
I see hope drained away with streams of now dried up tears.

Regret and scars remain as stains.
Sharp pains dulled by time
Joy is a distant memory covered by pain

Life is now about surviving.
About making memories go away.
Of making it through the night and living again for another day.

Proverbs 19:7 When you're down on your luck, even your family avoids you—
yes, even your best friends wish you'd get lost.
If they see you coming, they look the other way—
out of sight, out of mind."

I don't know about you, but I often "look the other way" to avoid possibly making eye contact with people who are down on their luck. Why is this? Are we afraid of what we will see? Are we afraid it will jolt us out of our comfortable reality?

19:17 Mercy to the needy is a loan to God, and God pays back those loans in full.

This verse is a promise and a challenge to us. It reminds me of the work Isaac and Brit are doing in Sierra Leone. God will surely bless them richly.

What are you doing to show mercy to the needy? Who are the needy in your life? Your city's homeless? A friend? Family members? What do you have to offer? Is it money? Gifts? Time? Or is it just eye contact and a smile?