We live in a world where children have experienced a life of dysfunction and negative nurture; these are the adults that are our neighbors and friends. Civil ways of reacting they never learned; healthy relationships are foreign to them. They carry scars that we can’t imagine; they hurt in ways we may never have experienced. They need redemption, grace and retraining. They need to be changed from hurters to helpers, takers to givers, and haters to lovers. They can be changed from rude and discourteous to kind and civil. They need to be reshaped by the teachings of Jesus and by the nurture of Christian community. This is now the nature of Christian ministry in the world.
Jesus, what you have called us to do we cannot do in our own strength, nor with our own wisdom. Train us, teach us how to do ministry in this present age. Amen!
