I think this is where Jesus would be...

I haven't been at my new job for very long, and I seem to be exhausted when I return home. The clinic is incredibly busy with so many people who have so little, and it's so eye-opening to realize there are so many people in our town who need so much. I never knew.
Today I had the opportunity to go with our outreach team. We went to one of the local shelters and a local soup kitchen. I saw all kinds of people with lots of problems (mostly hypertension, diabetes, and colds). These people were alcoholics, ex-convicts, and even prostitutes. At one point I felt like I just wanted to cry while I was taking some one's blood pressure just because I could see the hopelessness in their eyes. They have to hate that this is their one and only life and things haven't turned out how they had hoped or dreamed. As the lunch crowd started filling in the shelter I imagined that if Jesus were in Evansville, I think these would be the people that he'd be hanging out with. No wonder the Pharisees criticized him...these people are rough, the lowest of the public population hierarchy, but there is no doubt that they are the ones that need more hope than anyone. It's funny, I find it hard to imagine Jesus in a suit and tie at a pastor's conference. (not to say He wouldn't do that, it's just hard for me to imagine.)
So, this job is definitely exhausting but incredibly rewarding. I love it, and I'm just praying that I can really make a difference in their lives.