Author Archive
Chris Lahr
A Year of Self-Reflection and Growth: Are You Ready for Community?
Friday, February 17th, 2012
In the past fifteen years there has been a shift towards community that was not even part of most people’s vocabulary before. Fifteen years ago, I did not hear people talk about living in community and few people were talking about serving the poor. It was just around that time that I started meeting Jesus on the streets rather than just inside the four walls of a congregation. I am not anti-church at all, but I am excited to see a movement of people that are embracing Jesus both on the streets and on their knees. Part of this movement consists of folks seeking to live in intentional community. It seems every trip I take there are folks asking what they need to do to start living in an intentional community.
The Reverse Mission: What White People Can Do About Racism
Thursday, February 9th, 2012
Several years ago I was visiting the town I grew up in and was talking with a local youth worker about my life in Philly. Somewhere in the conversation she had the idea that it would be a great opportunity to bring the youth group from this small town to do a mission trip in the big city. Immediately I agreed, but also added that I thought it would be of equal value for me to bring a group of my youth from Philly to do a mission trip right there in Indiana, sort of a “reverse mission”. She seemed surprised and asked what in the world would they possibly do? I told her they would do the same as her youth group… “Nothing… but they would get a lot out of it!”
Worship and the Poor: The Coming Revival
Friday, January 27th, 2012
I just got back from spending about a month in India with my family. We had the opportunity to stay with our friend who runs a children’s home, made up of 48 kids. We were amazed by their faith. Each child had their own unique story of moving from abandonment and rejection (many orphaned) to this loving home. The children have been taught from a young age to worship, pray and rely on Jesus. I cannot tell you how many stories of healings, provisions, etc. we heard while we were there. The Bible says not to worry about tomorrow and these kids really lived this out! Our friend informed us that during the 13 years of existence, that they had never asked for donations. They simply pray and God provides. One story that stuck out was how they gathered to pray for provision for much needed housing for their older boys.
Worship and the Poor: Embracing Jesus on the Streets and on my Knees
Saturday, January 21st, 2012
Fifteen years ago my wife and I went to India for the first time. A great deal of our trip was spent at the Home for the Dying and Destitute in Calcutta, a home started by Mother Teresa. The home was made up of about fifty beds for men and the same for women. Each day people were brought in off the streets to spend their final days dying in peace. Lara and I joined other volunteers to help feed, bathe, and give basic medications as we spent time with those bound to their deathbeds. On one particular day, there was a boy brought in who was probably only 16 years old. After several hours, the boy began to breathe rather heavily and a nurse was summoned to see if anything could be done. With little medical options to offer, basic CPR was administered to no avail, as the boy breathed his last and died. We cleaned his body, wrapped him and took him to the morgue to be insinuated later that day.
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On the Receiving End: Beggars and PBJ
Friday, January 13th, 2012
I have had many people ask me whether or not they should give money to beggars. My reply is always, “First beg, then you’ll know how to NOT give to beggars.”
There are many responses to this question that a beggar sees as he sits with the hand extended hoping for your spare change… some casually walk to the other side of the street and act as if the beggar does not exist. Others come up on the beggar suddenly and do not have the time to cross to the other side of the street so they simply inform him that they do not have any “spare” change. Others approach the panhandler with a mission and begin preaching “the Good News” and letting him know what is needed to get his life straight now and in the life to come. Rare is the person who takes the time to get to know the person on the street, to listen to their story, to hear their struggle, to hear their wisdom.
Researching My Sundown Town: What white people can do about racism…
Thursday, October 6th, 2011
The next step on the path towards reconciliation is an important one. It is at this point that we reach a critical juncture of either rejection or repentance. Racial justice is not something easily obtained and for some white folks the temptation to return to silence or inactivity is a reality. For others it is at this stage that one commits to living differently. A motto I live by states, “for the way I am shame on my parents, but if I’m this way in the future shame on me.” We have all been shaped by our past both positively and negatively. When talking about racism it’s easy for many white folks to say things like, “let’s move on already,” “we cannot live in the past,” but it is up to us to act responsibly to make changes to those areas that have had negative consequences on ourselves and in society. The following are some steps I made at understanding some of my own history and the history of the white enclave of my birth. It has been this journey that I have been inspired not to look down on my hometown, but to have my eyes opened to her great potential in our society to model real racial justice.
