WHAT RAT HOLE?

The young people in this neighborhood are incredibly frustrating. No respect for authority or for personal property. They seem to flaunt calling your bluff, daring you to resort to touch them so they can have an excuse for the anger inside to explode.

Inside, I feel like I am still a young adult, one of them. But the truth is, like it or not, I am The Man. I became The Man by getting older, having a job, paying taxes, driving a car, and taking leadership in something. And you know what happens to The Man: they stick it to The Man.

Consider: Most have been in this neighborhood less than six months, and they will be gone in less than six more. Virtually all of them live without a father in the home. Of those 40 or so young people at the building last Friday night, more than half of the boys will be in jail in 8 years or less (or dead). They will be members of a gang in even less time. Drugs drive the economy, power structure and culture of this neighborhood, and without a moral bearing, what keeps them from it?

Shall I give up on this rascals? Shall I hand them over to Satan? Is there no hope? Shall I give up and serve people who are easier to love?

Let's see. What would Jesus do? . . .