Hope! It's hard to grasp....

Hope! It's so hard to grasp when despair is always knocking at our doors. Yet, despite it all, hope doesn't disappoint and it shines, mysteriously, in the chaos! Though it may be dim at times, hope remains, hope’s there, lighting up even those pitch dark caves we venture into! 

Every week I see things that could shatter me. I witness things that could make me numb. I hear about things that could send me into depression and give me fits of rage. The injustice and inequality I witness every day is downright criminal. Whether we choose to admit it or not, we are all surrounded by despair and hopelessness! 

I see it! I feel it! I know it! I mourn over the cyclical nature of addiction, systemic racism, the brutality of those with power, the violence that hits our streets and the abusive preying on the weak and mentally ill by those who’ve been given authority to administer rules and protect them. 

It doesn't change! It's the same every week, only the names, faces, and stories which change.

When I originally started writing this, one friend's head was split open by a hard object, another friend was arrested for a bogus nonviolent low-level drug offense and is now in jail and unable to post bail, another friend announces he has cirrhosis of the liver but he keeps picking up that dreaded bottle, another friend had to check himself into a hospital to protect himself from himself, and despite all the promises, our local to our national politicians keep making bias decisions that benefit the elite, causing the poor and homeless to suffer even more. 

Life ain't fair! Look around. Our justice system ain't fair! The bond system ain't fair! There are people sitting in jail because they can't afford a mere pittance to bail themselves out, meanwhile, there are people who've done horrific crimes who have a bountiful amount of cash and can set themselves free. I know one man who’s serving 9 years for stealing a bike, meanwhile Jason Van Dyke gets less time for blatantly murdering a teenager and firing 16 bullets into him! There are people living in tents and shelters and riding trains every night, meanwhile, certain neighbors are living in luxury and finding pleasure in ridiculing them while also blaming them for society’s woes.  People are using their power and privilege to make life harder for these folks who do not have a bed to climb into every night. In today's age, we can sit behind a keyboard or use our smartphones to be so mean and vengeful to people we don't like the look of and never speak to - it's especially harsh when those bullied are homeless or living in tents!

Just as that bullet executed Robert Kraft, an innocent man just walking down the street outside my home, a lot of people suffer because of "shots fired" by those with power! He was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and that bullet struck him down and killed him before our eyes. In the same way, we live in a world where the bigwigs and the elite fire their shots, mainly striking the poor and viewing them as collateral damage. As our Ward has been relentlessly and callously sold off to rich developers, it is the poor and homeless who are relentlessly and callously ignored and forced to relocate. Our alderman, the mayor, and other politicians have chosen to bow down to the elite, tell blatant lies and use effective propaganda, which causes the poor and homeless to suffer even more! They have decided to submit to the almighty dollar rather than their poorest and weakest constituents. It is no joke and it’s nothing new! Life, since the beginning, has never been free of gross inequality, racially-charged injustice, and violence, in fact, as the centuries roll on, it all just seems to gain momentum. 

Hope is confusing and mysterious because it often doesn't give us concrete answers to the concrete problems that consume us. But, mysteriously hope can be found and is still there, helping us survive in this world of hardship and woe! Hope can’t survive without a leap of faith. Hope helps us keep going. Hope raises a defiant fist in the faces of those bringing despair. Hope is revolutionary. Hope shines in the darkness. Hope mysteriously remains and lives on, despite it all. That is the nature of hope...

Hope shines in community! We got to stop looking to those at the top, the ruling class, the politicians, for answers and solutions. Instead, hope rises through grassroot movements, in our own communities, as we lift up and support one another! As we get to know each other, as we rally together, as we embrace the most vulnerable, collectively we can go against the flow, go against the oppressive systems, and see change! When we unite together and encourage one another, a remarkable strength grows and hope rises out of the ashes. 

I’ve seen this for years in Cornerstone! On a daily level, our guests face so much opposition and discrimination from unforgiving and prejudice neighbors. Because they’re labeled “homeless” or because of the color of their skin, they face housing discrimination and are constantly overlooked for employment. In a gentrifying neighborhood such as ours, too many of Uptown’s residents indirectly and directly love to harass, criminalize, and ridicule those who are homeless! We even have a neighbor who spies on, watches and records our participants, waiting to pounce on an opportunity to call the alderman or 911. Yet, despite all the odds stacked against our guests, they keep on pressing forward together, by lifting each other up, preventing each other from falling, and keeping hope alive! The strength, resilience, and hope I’m blessed to see daily is remarkable and encourages me to not surrender but to keep on moving toward the goal! Hope shines in a united community. 

Hope shines through loving advocacy and hospitality! Those with a voice, money, power, and privilege should use their status to bless and lift up those without a voice or assets. Not only does a "rejected" community need one another, but they also need activists, social workers, clergy, neighbors, and anyone who is willing to support the most vulnerable around us. Hope starts shining when people realize that others have their backs and are willing to put everything on the line for them. Hope shines brighter when we realize we aren't alone, but there's a whole group of people fighting with and for us. 

I saw this in Uptown Tent City (UTC)! So many housed in our neighborhood expressed raging hatred for those living under viaducts! They wanted them gone, viewing them an eyesore, so they started using abusive tactics like calling 911 to have them arrested or ticketed. (Yes, simply because they were homeless and living in tents). Many of us saw this abuse of power and privilege, so we rallied together for those being criminalized and abused. We sat with them, we recorded cops, we marched to our alderman in protest, we provided clothing and tents, we gave away food, we helped them with housing, we didn’t allow this abuse to continue on our watch. People came from all over the greater Chicago area to do likewise and the blatant abuse of power diminished - it was obvious, as people rallied together, the abusers realized they couldn't do what they were doing. I remember nights when there would be multiple vehicles flooding these bridges, offering support and giving what they could. It was powerful and Hope was kindled! 

When people are being harassed and slandered, they need advocates and activists who are willing to put their reputations and lives on the line! This gives hope! As our politicians create false hope and feed us lies, those who are suffering need real hope from those who are willing to fight for them. Because of this support for those living in Uptown Tent City, those in power created a "pilot project" where real solutions were offered. But advocates and activists remained and kept the pressure on, not allowing their promises to fade away or come up empty (as they often do). On top of that, and despite what our alderman proudly boasts, it wasn’t him, it was relentless workers on the ground, it was activists who wouldn’t keep their mouths shut, it was everyday folks who came with gifts, who executed the plan with love and compassion! As a result, 75 people moved from living in tents into housing. Hope rose out of the ashes!

A beautiful hope arises when we support one another in the struggle and we also have advocates lifting us up simultaneously. It’s a grassroots movement. We gotta work together. As with UTC, I see this every day at CCO, as our participants lift each other up, countless people come and let them know they are not ignored or forgotten. Advocacy and activism don't have to be huge actions or demonstrations, all it requires is simple acts of love and compassion in the face of adversity. Don't forget; that meal, that coat, that prayer, that blanket, that phone call, that hug, that transit card all may seem small and insignificant, but they all provide hope to those who don't have much. 

Hope shines in realizing God’s love for us! In our neighborhood, the "first-are-first" and the last get trampled on, yet Jesus made this bold promise, “the first shall be last and the last shall be first!” He also said, “blessed are the poor, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven”. This gives us hope because, in His Kingdom, Jesus has reversed the pecking order! He turned it upside down and has given those who are poor, criminalized, homeless, and marginalized real everlasting hope! 

The problem is though; the church continues to promote the same “top-on-down” mentality as we see in politics and elsewhere, the wealthy and elite are elevated, while poor and displaced are marginalized and oppressed. Churches have reversed the order Jesus proclaimed and are conforming to the world’s pattern instead of challenging it. We’re often too scared to be that prophetic voice and rebuke the people Jesus rebuked because they have the power and money, yet we rebuke (or judge, or condemn) the very ones Jesus elevated. It's easier and more comfortable that way! The question remains, if we follow Jesus, (the One who rebuked the Scribes and Pharisees, the One who spoke to the woman at the well), do we believe in the power of this “last shall be first” gospel? 

Hope shines when we believe, trust, and live in his loving inclusive Kingdom and in the power of His gospel. The trouble is, sadly, that hope disappears because the church has an awful reputation of being exclusive, hateful, money-hungry, and power-mongers, making people think God views them the same way! This damage is palpable, as I've had too many people weep about how God doesn't love them and they think they're unworthy of his grace and forgiveness. When confronted with this grief, I often share with them the parable of the "Pharisee and the tax-collector", helping them realize that their feelings of unworthiness make them worthy before God and this reality should flood them with hope!

Despite the negative vibe I'm giving, there are many who are purposefully going against the grain by following the "upside-down" good news Jesus lived and spoke about! When we, as Christians, live this way, hope shines through and in us! 

I see this happening at a service on Chicago’s west side called The Bridge! Reacting and responding to how felons, the homeless, and gang members are often ostracized, judged, and discriminated against in Churches, they decided to bridge the gap (hence the name). Every Tuesday night they pick up people from recovery programs and people from the neighborhood wander in to hear the good news, sing songs and eat a hot meal. They choose pastors from all around Chicago to come and preach on questions the participants ask. I’ve had the opportunity to go preach there on many occasions, and the hope offered is down-to-earth and real. People who are always told how worthless and unforgivable they are, leave the service feeling and knowing they are accepted, forgiven, and loved by others and our almighty merciful God! It is a beautiful and sincere experience - where everyone leaves encouraged and hopeful!
This video is a brief glimpse of what goes on at Bridge serve, and here's a recent tweet from The Bridge Chicago. It reveals their heart and love for the “least of these”: "Your insecurities are arguments with God. He is telling you that you are loved and forgiven, but your insecurities are trying to convince Him of that you are the one person the gospel doesn’t apply to. The good news is that God is going to win those arguments in the end.”

I believe Jesus, through the cross, through his resurrection, is the one who rights the wrongs, sets us free, and gives hope when the world reveals it’s hopelessness. His hope is an eternal hope! 

I want to close with a story about a man who has stayed at CCO, lived in a tent in UTC, and attended The Bridge. People thought he couldn’t change, he’d been rotating in and out of prison and homelessness for decades. He’d been deemed unforgivable and many tried to push him out of our Ward, but he proved them wrong and now he is successfully housed. Hope wasn’t found through our alderman, politicians, or the prison system, it was found through a loving community who lifted him up when he fell, activists who supported him when all seemed lost, and people who relentlessly let him know he is loved and cherished by God and there is nothing he could do to change God’s mind. 

Let’s never stop seeing and bringing hope, even when it seems so hard to grasp because the world desperately needs it!