friend to the poor

Finding our way to the preschool has become second nature to us. Talaba is a maze constructed of man-made cement walls and other means. Bamboo poles tied together make up the foundation for another area. It’s as if every turn, corner look like the one you just passed, you have to know your way here or you’ll end up off the island! In some areas where tin & other scrap metal construct a house over the water, you think, how in the world do these houses stay up? And of course those that live here move around skillfully, walking past me and my itsy-bitsy steps across the bamboo. You have to know your way around here.

Two weeks ago, during our lunch break at Talaba we asked Pastor Malit to give us the top 5 things she felt were necessary to have in order to work with the poor. Crystal & I had a conversation about this earlier in the week, we talked for a while chewing on what this would look like for us back in the states, and the global church overall. We both hesitated to answer this question, simply because we’re not fully aware of what this looks like. We thought this would be a good time to revisit this question with Pastor Malit. She graciously declined our appraisal of her being an expert in this work, as it is in her culture she told us that we know the answer! HA! I laughed in my mind.

Here what she gave us. She said that first, you must have a burden for the poor in your heart, it has to burn for them. It starts here she said. Next, you must live among them, eat what they eat, etc. She asked us, how will you serve them if you don’t understand & know how they live? The last thing was to know their history, their current struggles & problems, to basically get involved in their lives. Get in their live so you can know how to pray, and serve them. This made sense to us. I know I have so much to learn about the poor, how to serve and love them. As for now, I am learning from them, keeping my ears open more often than my mouth and my hands open to receive and give.

Having observed her life and attesting to what she’s done in her journey with the poor, I know Pastor Malit knows her way around here. She knows how to reach the poor, she knows how to preach in the church to the poor. She knows which corners to take and which ones to avoid. Their burdens have become her burdens. She’s eager to ask for support on their behalf, not hers. She responds to calls for help at all hours of the day, she knows how to protect the poor. It’s like she comes alive here, this is what she lives for. Pastor Malit has been doing ministry here for almost 2yrs now, she is becoming known among the poor in Talaba. She knows her way around here.