Over and Over

I have been inspired over and over by the song Windowsill by Arcade Fire (lyrics here, audio here).  It consistently makes me re-evaluate the choices I make and more importantly, the reasons for making those choices.  This past weekend I was scheduled to play a benefit concert and had put together a slide show to give the songs a bigger impact (and hopefully increase the amount of funds donated).  The cause was World Vision, the development organization that I work for.  The people putting together the benefit broke up the evening into three parts: Moral Outrage, The Solution, Our Response.  I thought it was great and immediately thought of the song Windowsill for the first portion of the evening.  For the slide during Windowsill, I created this picture:

 

I think that the actual message of the song is slightly different than the message I was trying to convey.  I wanted the lyrics of the song to simply draw people into the possibility that what they know as the "reality" of America, might not be a full reality and might even be worthy of rejection on several levels.  

The word that rings with me today is "shaded" or "shadowed".  Rather than our understandings and perceptions being incorrect, I would propose that our understandings and perceptions are largely incomplete.  My daily routine and schedule do not really allow for me to observe and interact with the full implications of all my actions.  Specifically, I do not interact with the indirect repercussions of my virtually unconscious decisions.

This picture is an image of my life.  I live in a beautiful home in Minneapolis with a great view.  But the reality of many choices that I make is that they might lead to poverty and injustice around the world.  If I were to look out my window and see a more "real" view of the world, I might see these faces.  I echo what Rich Stearns says about who our neighbor is in his recent book, "The Hole In Our Gospel":

"...three major impediments stood in the way of anyone wanting to love their distant neighbors, even into the mid-twentieth century: awareness, access, and ability."

Awareness -- "We have become detached and indifferent toward the constant and repeated images of poverty and adversity that bombard us.  But we cannot claim that we don't know our distant neighbor is in need -- not anymore, not today."

Access -- "Today, not only can we be on the other side of the planet in fewer than twenty-four hours, but tens of millions of Americans fly internationally.  We now have the opportunity not only to see those in extreme poverty but also to help them.

Ability -- "...only in the last fifty years has our understanding of the complex relationship between poverty, health, culture, and economics made it possible to implement effective and sustainable strategies to address poverty."

The truth is, I can't look out my window or walk out my front door without confronting poverty unless I choose to ignore the knowledge that I have been given.

But I'm still overwhelmed.  So now what?

Here is my advice.  Find ONE story.  Learn it.  Memorize it.  Make it part of YOUR story.  Make it something you are passionate about.  Finally, tell people about it.

So, now you have a reason to surf the internet for the next five minutes.  Stop checking your Facebook wall for the next five minutes and go find a story of ONE person that you can carry with you.  Let me know what you find...