go. be the bucket.

On one of our first days in Swaziland we distributed buckets of food to people with HIV/AIDS. We drove out into the rurals areas around Manzini and visited patients in their homes, talking with them, praying with them, and giving them these buckets. One night during devos, Joe gave us a bucket analogy. Why did we get out of the van, walk down these uneven dirt paths in the blazing sun,  into these small homes, for hours upon end, just to deliver a bucket? Why not just drop it off at their door or at the end of the path? They'd still get their bucket. So why take the time and energy to go to them?

The answer seems obvious in a situation like this. We go to show people that we care about them; that they are worth our time and energy; that they are valuable. Duh. In a situation as desperate as this, of course that's what we'd do. But...what about the shut-ins? What about the prisoners? What about the child in the hospital? Or the single mother looking for a babysitter? What about the millions of orphans around the world who need a loving family? Or the people who have never heard of Jesus Christ? What about the person you always see eating alone everyday? Or the student who dropped all of his books in the library? What about the homeless? What about the woman who just lost her husband? Why do we not go to these people?

We have to break down these walls that separate us from the world and answer Christ's calling. He wants us to be relational. He wants us to show love and compassion. To be that person who goes when no one else does. We need to take Christ, the food of life, to the world. We can't just drop off the bucket. We have to go and be the bucket of Christ. Willing and ready to love and serve.