Jobs

“Love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.”
Luke 6: 35-6
“As each has received a gift, employ it for one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.”
1Pet 4: 10

I met with officials of my township this morning regarding the topic of helping our unemployed, as I outlined in my meditation titled “Asking and Giving”. The concept of matching the unemployed in the community with part-time jobs made available by others in the community was well received. Actions are being pursued to try and make this happen. I wish other communities and/or churches would make similar efforts.

I read a startling fact in this morning’s Wall Street Journal: that for every job offered in Detroit there are 18 unemployed. That is a hope-draining statistic. The number of job listings in the country is at an all time low. The odds are that somewhere in your neighborhood is at least one unemployed person, and he is having much difficulty finding another job. Any job. Surely there is some job around your house needing to be done -- ask your wife or kids if you can't figure it out.

They are your neighbors. They are the ones spoken of in the commandment to “Love your neighbor.” To the degree that you have any money in the bank “for a rainy day”: it is raining for them. They don’t want charity; they want to maintain their dignity.

Go out and find them: through your neighborhood newsletter, through your church, through your local government. You want change in America? It starts with you. Don’t volunteer to help the polar bears, the coral reefs, or even to cure cancer. First and foremost, volunteer to help your neighbor.

It is not enough merely to exist. It’s not enough to say “I’m earning enough to support my family. I do my work well. I’m a good father, husband, churchgoer.”
That’s all very well, but you must do something more. Seek always to do some good, somewhere. Every man has to seek in his own way to realize his true worth. You must give some time to your fellow man, even if it’s a little thing. Do something for those who need help, something for which you get no pay but the privilege of doing it. For remember, you don’t live in a world all your own. Your brothers are here too.
Albert Schweitzer