Because We Are Very Poor

Photo Credit: Hannah Sterling

I (Jim) just got back from a trip to the vegetable market where about eight women sit waiting for people to come buy vegetables.  I'm told that you used to have to haggle over prices but now prices are all fixed - a very good thing for this mzungu who provides plenty of entertainment without clumsy bargaining.  I don't do well when I visit the veggie market.

Apparently, and I found this out after the fact, the normal routine goes something like this:  Each time you enter the building, you move in a counter-clockwise rotation, buying a small amount from each of the ladies until you've gotten everything you need.  At that point, you are supposed to remember where you left off and begin at that point the next visit.

The first time I went to the veggie market, I traveled CLOCKWISE around the circle and, in typical Kenyan style, nobody wanted to tell me I'd messed up!  In fact, it wasn't until the next visit, when I walked to my beginning point, that I even knew I'd ever messed up in the first place.  There was some disagreement among the women about where I should begin and who I should be buying my vegetables from - finally, I was told, "You just go backwards again from this spot."

Backwards?  I had no idea.  From that point on, I have been the mzungu who does his shopping backwards and each time I enter the room, snickers and smirking smiles greet me.  For months, I tried to scheme a way to switch directions while saving face, but it never worked.

Today, I'd forgotten where I last finished buying so, I told the veggie ladies, thinking they'd remember.  Remarkably, they didn't.  One of the ladies said, "You just buy something from each of us, because we are very poor."  This was IT!!  The golden opportunity - the chance to travel counterclockwise.  I totally missed it.  I'm STILL the one that does his shopping backwards.  So, I bought something from each of them; I spent 30-50 shillings at each spot (40-60 cents) and went on my way.

The whole walk home, I thought about that woman's statement: "Because we are very poor."  She wasn't kidding.  After paying their suppliers, they probably each earned 10-12 cents doing business with me.

Photo Credit:  Hannah Sterling

I (Jim) think most of us have heard the parable of the rich young ruler at some point in our lives - and I think most of us understand the basic lesson.  Yes, it's difficult for the rich to put their trust in something other than material provisions - obviously.  Now this may sound strange, but I don't think we (the church) understand this parable very well.  I don't think most of us really understand what it means to give up everything.  Somehow, Jesus' command to sell everything and give the money to the poor fails to register fully in our Western minds.  If we sell everything and give the money to the poor, then WE will be POORER than them.  Could I give away everything and become destitute save for my knowledge of Him?  I can't even imagine living on less than $1.25 a day as approximately 50% of Sub-Saharan Africa does.

I am the rich young ruler.

In the states it was easy to deny - as a teacher with a family of four, we lived just above the "poverty line."  Here, on a missionary salary, we are wealthy:  Wealthy enough to have a change of clothes every day.  Wealthy enough to buy more than maize.

Some say salvation is free - and theologically, they're absolutely right.  But the truth is, following Christ costs us everything.  We're still called (every one of us) to give up everything and follow Him.  Matthew 13:44  "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up.  Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field."  Can I really surrender everything?

When outsiders look at the church in America, many see hypocrites hiding a multitude of sins behind opulent church facades while much of the world suffers.  And in some sense, they are right - we are wealthy.  Like the rich young ruler, much of our trust and comfort is in our wealth.  If God told me to give all my possessions to the poor, could I?  The totally honest answer is, "I don't know."  I'd like to, but really, could I?  So then the assay: if I am unsure that I can abandon everything to trust and follow Christ, then am I trusting and following Christ?  I think I'm typical of Western Christians and I'm afraid we may be spiritually bankrupt.  Can we surrender everything?  We need to.

Because we are very poor.