Party in the Park

About a year ago, in the little known city of Bryan, TX, a radical outreach to the impoverished was started by a group of college students, Christians, social workers, and community members.  This outreach was not organized by a church or a denomination.  It was not the brain child of a global organization attempting to stamp out poverty and social injustice.  It was born from a group of people coming together to do something good for the poor.

Every Saturday at 4:00 p.m. and every Sunday at 1:00 p.m., you will find these people having a meal at a local park with the homeless.  No one comes there with the intention of feeding the homeless.  They eat a meal with them.  Everyone who can afford to brings something.  Even if each person only brings a little, there always seems to be enough.  The homeless and the poverty stricken who attend the events eat right beside community leaders, college kids, and other individuals who just want to make a difference.  Children can be seen running and playing.  After the meal, you will find groups of people sitting around and talking.  Others are playing volleyball.  It's an absolutely wonderful experience and much more like the New Testament church than what many of us experience on Sunday mornings.

I've attended Party in the Park and I have friends who attend this event.  The stories I hear are phenomenal.  People go there with the intention of meeting friends, sharing a meal, and playing some games.  There are no speakers, no worship leaders, no gospel presentations, and yet, these weekend meetings are full of spiritual fruit.  People are displaying the love of God through their actions and not their words.  The rich are not helping the poor.  The have's are not helping the have not's.  Human beings are helping human beings.    This is the way Christ loved.  He gave His time, His resources, and His heart to those around HIm.  This is the best way to win souls, because it's what Jesus did.

The man credited with organizing these events is named Dan.  Dan is an unassuming figure.  I doubt he looks the part of a leader, and I'm sure he would never consider himself to be one.  He wears t-shirts and shorts.  He plays volleyball and spends time with friends.  He does not fit the image of an elite Christian.  He just saw a need and invited some friends to help meet that need.  Those friends brought their friends, and now this event has more people showing up on Sundays that some of our churches. 

Today is Blog Action Day.  It's a day to write a blog about a way to help stop poverty.  As this is the urban evangelism and discipleship channel, I wanted to give a practical way for individuals to help end poverty while at the same time being able to reveal the love of Christ to the urban community.    I chose to write about the Party in the Park event, because I wanted to illustrate that everyone can make a difference.  Maybe you have not been blessed with a guilded tongue to preach the Gospel in flowery theological terms.  Can you cook?  Can you bake some bread?  Can you play a game of volleyball?  Maybe your gift is to look past the differences in individuals and love them the way they are.  Maybe your gift is to be a friend to those in need.  Whatever you do, do it for the glory of God.  Be real.  Be relevant.  Be full of the grace of God.