Thursday, March 16, 2017
Jer. 17:5-10; Ps. 1; Lk. 16:19-31; Matthew 7:7-8
When we began the work that would become First Nesters several years ago, our first apartment was for a young girl who was sleeping on her clothes on the floor of her new apartment. She owned her clothes, several books stacked on the floor, a broken lawn chair retrieved from a dumpster, and three kittens. We scoured want ads, friends’ attics, and thrift stores. Seemingly out of the blue, people came to help. We had no plan to follow, no instructions to guide us—only a wish to do something for these young people of our community who faced so many struggles.
Since we became the Nesters, we have seen the effects of human neglect and abandonment as well as compassion and generosity, as would be expected. But we have also seen something else so repeatedly that it cannot be explained as mere coincidence.
At that very first apartment, I asked the young girl if she would like a bookcase for her books that she so clearly valued. She joyfully said, “Oh, yes!” After I had made the offer, I mentally kicked myself, wondering where I would ever find a bookcase that would fit into the tiny area of her apartment. A day later, a lady who would become one of the Nesters came to me and said, “I told my neighbor about what we are doing and she offered me a piece of furniture if we want it. It is a small bookcase.”
It fit perfectly.
—Jane Ford