Whatsoever you do to the least...

Whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers (sisters), you do to me. These are the words of Jesus. Taking that to heart, our world contains many people who are hurting the body of Christ.

I work with "the least". I know lots of kids who have been hurt by adults. I talk to them every day. I see their pain and help them work through it when I can. I talk to their parents too. The very parents who have hurt them. This can make me angry. I want to say to them "How can you even think of using your hand to hurt this precious child?". Then I get to know the parents a little more and I realize, they are just little wounded kids in big adult bodies. Someone hurt them when they were little too. Hence, the cycle of abuse continues, and perhaps someday, these cute little kids that I know today, will become big angry adults who abuse their own kids.

Sometimes it is overwhelming. How can I possibly make a difference in their lives? How can I influence their future as well as their today? How can I touch the hearts of their parents to motivate them to change?

I never in my life, as a "good little Catholic girl" thought I would get to know people who are, or have been, drug abusers, drug sellers, prostitutes, thieves, people on parole, pedophiles, and just very miserable, filthy, angry, mean, people. But here I am doing just that.

Every once in a while I run across a parent who wants to really make a change. Every once in a while I run across a parent who actually apologizes to their child(ren) and really means it.

The woundedness is so deep in some families that the sunlight seems so very far away, and the chance for success seems slim to none.

The longer I work with people, the more I am convinced that the only One who can ever make a difference is Jesus. I can do my part. My little part. I can surrender and ask Jesus to let me be his instrument, but the rest is up to Him. I am hoping that perhaps a word I say to someone will be implanted like a seed within their heart. And someday, perhaps this seed will sprout. I have to believe that will happen. So I try, in little ways, to plant seeds.

One of the things I do, as a Catholic, is that every day at lunch I quietly pray a grace before my meal. I end with the sign of the cross. I say nothing, but try to use that as a witness. Sometimes the kids will notice and ask me what I am doing. I respond that I am thanking God for my food before I eat it. Sometimes the kids (3-7 year olds), will start talking about God in their own way. It is very cute to hear what they think of God and who He is. I listen and say little things like how God loves them and is always with them.

Just last week, an 8 year old boy told me that he prays every night. I encouraged him to continue praying and that no matter where he ever lived or what time it was, even in the middle of the night, that Jesus was always there to listen. Hopefully I planted a seed. Since I am an adult he trusts, I think he took my words to heart.

I guess my point here is two fold. The first being that as Catholic Christians we have to realize that even the smallest things we do may have a big impact on someone else, young or old. Secondly, we have to realize that some problems in this world are just too big for us to fix and we have to pray and rely on Jesus to use us as his instruments and to ask for his Holy Spirit to enter a situation and fix it.

That is all I wanted to say today. That, and please pray for everyone in the world who is being abused. Please pray that they will look to Jesus for their healing.

God bless your night/day.