The new year has brought with it our annual ‘fresh start’. We moved again, right on the first day of January, back to the bustling hustle of New York City. Our lives contained in two suitcases and carry-on sized bags, whilst the rest of our belongings lay strewn between Pasadena, Liverpool, and our storage unit located somewhere in Manhattan.
I’m sure like most other humans at the start of a new year, the beginning of this one got us thinking about how we want to live it, where we want to give our yes, and what exactly we should prioritize. Most of those things are unfulfilled desires and passions rolled over from the previous years that we’re hoping against hope will be met in this one, but others are the smaller daily decisions of how we want to invest our time and money. New simple ways in which we can bring heaven to earth.
I was reading Luke’s Gospel when a passage caused me to stop and pay attention:
“When someone comes to beg from you, give to that person what you have…However you wish to be treated by others is how you should treat everyone else.”
Luke 6:30-31 The Passion Translation (TPT)
Homelessness and the disparities between the wealthy and the poor are unavoidable when living in any city. It would seem they are the perfect environments for the rich to thrive and the less fortunate to survive, and it is in this tension that we choose to live, plant and take root in. In reading the above verses, I was reminded of every person I have encountered during my daily commutes who has stopped and begged for help. I would go as far as to say that it is near impossible to step foot outside your door and not be met by a person in need of a place to stay, a bite to eat, or a hot drink to warm them. I felt the conviction of one who knows they can do something, even in a small way, to bless someone in need.
Generosity takes intentionality. Yes, we can be spontaneous, suddenly taken over with desires to give all we have, but let’s be honest, they don’t happen every day. Most days we don’t actually feel like we have anything to give, and we’re not always sure if we want to. So to counteract these less shiny days, we have decided to budget generosity into our weekly spending, so that when someone asks, we’ll be in a position to give what we have.
In New York, other than the Empire State building and Lady Liberty, the other staples of the city are Starbucks and Walgreens. They’re everywhere and accessible to everyone. So each week we now give out gift cards with little notes of love and encouragement to those we encounter who need it.
Last week I spent twenty minutes talking to Steven as he cleaned his bedroom on 37th St and told me his life story, convinced I was an angel. I met Mike who was old enough to be my grandad and Alisha, a pregnant mother who was hungry and begging in Lincoln Center. It doesn’t take much to restore someone’s dignity in a moment, but it does take intentionality.
I wonder how often we just don’t stop because we feel like we have nothing to give? But what if we made sure our pockets were always full? If we found ourselves hungry and without a home, wouldn’t we want people to have purposed in their hearts to help us too?
