This article was imported from our previous website, which many have broken some of the content. We apologize in advance for any strange formatting or broken links you may find.
What do you see when you look at people? When you look at neighborhoods? When you look at statistics about poverty or crime rates or people’s education levels? I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I always have God’s perspective.
In Matthew 9:36-38 (NASB), we read about what Jesus sees when He looks at people:
Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”
I was recently reminded of the importance of this when I visited a team of people in action at Powers-Ginsburg Elementary School while serving at a ministry called Saturday Sports.
When I showed up there were about 30-35 kids, comprised of most elementary school age, but also with a handful of teenagers and about five adult leaders from The Well. Some kids were playing basketball, others were working on crafts and some were on the playground. What I noticed right away is that the kids were having a lot of fun and the adult leaders really seemed to care about them. There was a great vibe and a sense that God was working.
In time, we organized a game of touch football. As we lined up to pick teams, I noticed one young man (my guess is he was about 15 years old) who appeared to be very athletic and taking this way too seriously. He changed into cleats, put on wide receiver gloves and had that “eye of the tiger” look on his face.
Once we started playing, he laid it all out there. There were other teenagers and adults playing (so please don’t think he was running over little kids because he wasn’t). But he did score a lot of touchdowns and made a lot of interceptions. He even intercepted a pass intended for me! I think he committed pass interference on that one, but I decided to let it go.
As I was talking with two of the leaders afterward, Kelli and Shelbi Hudson, I made a joke about how seriously this young man was taking the game. And that’s when I got to hear just a little bit of his story.
His name was Roberto* and he started coming to Saturday Sports when he was a little kid. He keeps going because he loves it so much. He didn’t get to go to the organized sports programs a lot of other kids get to go to growing up because his parents didn’t have the money for it. In fact, the Hudson family was able to take his whole family (him and his mom, dad, and younger brother and sister) to a Fresno State game last year. They had never done anything like that as a family and were overjoyed at the experience.
The Hudsons also told me about some of the dysfunction and pressures toward crime and gangs that kids like Roberto face, but are being delivered from by God’s grace. For some of these kids, like Roberto, Saturday Sports is an absolute highlight of their week. So why wouldn’t they go all out for the one time during the week they get to play sports in a semi-competitive environment?
The morning ended with a time of teaching from God’s Word and prayer (along with a free lunch). As people from our church faithfully connect with people God loves in our neighborhood, the gospel is preached and lives are being transformed by Jesus one at a time.
What a cool picture of what it means to look at people with compassion – to see how they might be distressed and dispirited, like sheep without a shepherd – and then to enter into their lives, because the harvest is plentiful and every person matters to God.
*Name has been changed