Shameless Audacity

This is a rare, through-the-woods sunset that we get to see from our deck every once in a blue moon.

I saw on the news last night where some group in Grand Rapids held a fundraising campaign to rescue several city swimming pools from shutting down this Summer due to cuts in the city budget. They raised almost $180,000 in a really short period of time. Which is great for the kids and families of our town. The guy they interviewed said that 80% of the donations that came in were under $100, which I thought was really great, because that tells me their fundraising success wasn't mainly because of a couple of gigantic gifts.

I was glad to see that news report, because I figured if one town can raise that much money in a week or two to keep 3 city pools open for 7 weeks this Summer, then we should be able to feed a 1000 famished school kids for a whole year.... all for about the same amount of money.

I was reading in Luke's gospel this week and ran across these words of Jesus:

Suppose you have a friend and you go to him at midnight and say, "Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him." And suppose the one inside answers, "Don't bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can't get up and give you anything." I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.

The passage goes on to tell of God's eager willingness to give Himself to folks, if they would just ask.

The phrase that stood out to me was "shameless audacity." Sometimes I think people must think to themselves that that Steve's got a lot of nerve asking for project donations all the time. To be honest with you, I think that about myself. I am nervous about what people must think.

For me, though, what compels me to swallow my pride and write a blog or drop a bunch of letters in the mail is sort of like the last minute desperation those city pool fundraisers felt. That is to say, it's now or never to make the ask.

I know... shameless. Audacious and shameless.