Transformation: One Act, Big Impact

Jeff Bisgrove–Neighborhood Transformation

Seeing God at work in a neighborhood can be a challenge.  The world pushes us to measure things as the world does.  Hence we find ourselves pushed into using numbers – people attending events, people involved in an after-school program, or people graduating from a program.  These numbers might not be bad in and of themselves.  Transformation does indeed manifest itself in numbers.  However, I must remind myself that God is really concerned about the person.  Numbers follow, but it all starts in the heart, and He has to remind me of this often.

This month, a family we have been working with in one of our poorest, underserved neighborhoods took a step of faith.   We had started a local basketball team. Basketball is hugely popular in this community, and the basketball teams that are present in the community charge money to join.  The fees are not major amounts, but something many people in the community cannot afford.  Therefore we started a team, run by locals for the locals, that was free to join.  However, the coach got ill and was hospitalized, and the team stopped. It stayed this way for a couple of months.  The coach recovered but could not go back to coaching; no team.

Last month, one family decided to step in and coach.  We now have three teams running, so we are back in business. The family, with no job, no car, and no real hope of a gift-laden Christmas stepped in to run the team.  They did it because they love the kids, they love their neighborhood, and they enjoy sharing in the community.  You could argue it is a small act, and in the world of numbers it is.  However, in a place where gaming the system is common, it is a major step forward in faith for the community.  I did not realize the magnitude of this act until I prayed over it, and God opened my heart to it.  God is moving.