"JUST TAKE THE FLIPPIN' WATER!"

Sadly, when surrounded by poverty daily, your eyes become accustomed to the pain. Not that my heart does not sink every time I walk the streets of Kampala, because it does… but somehow poverty has begun to seem normal. It seems like just another way of life.

This definitely is the case during streets programs. I remember the tears that flowed two years ago when I attended my first street program. I remember the shocking realization that children ACTUALLY slept on the streets at night. Now, I have completely wrapped my head around it. I am no longer in disbelief… because daily I see it happen.

Though it seems normal, just last week I was reminded that, in fact, it is not “normal.” In the middle of leading bible study, in walked a little boy wearing nothing but a t-shirt. Street children surround me on a daily basis, but never have I seen a child without pants. I thought to myself, “maybe they are somewhere drying.” My mind began spinning thinking about what possible reason this child would have for not wearing pants while my mind refused to believe he did not own any. When approaching a Ugandan staff member about it, he too assumed the boy must have pants and just was not wearing them. After some simple investigation at the end of the program, he found out this boy in fact did not have any. Can you even imagine… no pants?

When this boy was told he would have pants bought for him, he said, “they sell them in the morning at the market, I will wait till tomorrow.” You may assume by this statement that pants are only sold in the mornings in Africa – but that is not the case. They are however sold at a cheaper price in the morning. So, yes… this child without pants who was offered pants, offered to wait till they were sold cheaper.

Directly after street programs, I was walking down the street and met a woman who said to me, “Give me a cold water.” “Excuse me,” I said, assuming I heard her wrong. “Give me a cold soda,” she once again said. I did not have a cold soda, but did however have warm water. I kindly went to hand it to her, to which she responded, “no, I want a cold soda.” I explained to her that I did not have it but did have water to offer to her. Just when I thought I could not have been baffled enough, she said, “Give me money for a cold soda.” Maybe it was because she specified that the soda needed to be cold, maybe it was because she demanded rather than asked, or maybe it was because she did not want the water I offered, but my response was to become angry. “JUST TAKE THE FLIPPIN’ WATER,” I thought!

I walked away confused wishing the woman I had just encountered could have a heart like the little boy without pants. I wished she would be grateful for what she was offered rather than thinking she was owed something more. I wish she knew that water was good for her and would sustain her, yet soda was not. I wish she had been content to go without like the little boy was.

Soon after I had an epiphany. Was I like the boy without the pants or like the woman demanding soda? I think, I am like the woman demanding soda, unfortunately.

How often do you think God looks at us and thinks, “JUST TAKE THE FLIPPIN’ WATER!” I think very often. As he continues to give, we continue to ask for more.  Not only that, but we demand our soda to be cold. We tell God what we want, how we want it, and we think we are owed it. He tries to give us what is good for us, like water, and yet we think we know what is best for us.

How often do you think God looks at us and see us as the little boy without pants? How often are we content with what we have, asking for nothing? I think not very often.

Hebrews 13:5 says, “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.””

May we live a life that exemplifies that we believe that: He will never leave us nor forsake us… whether that be in pants or not.

Whatever life situation you may face today. Whatever hand of cards you are given. Whatever things in life you feel you are lacking. Whatever gifts from God you are undeservingly given. Remember:

“JUST TAKE THE FLIPPIN’ WATER!”

God knows what He is doing. Be thankful for it. He will never leave you nor forsake you. God has given Himself, and that is all we need.

Xoxo,

Jordan