January 23, 2009
Taking the Time to Make a Difference
Find the one who can make it happen
BY PAUL R. LEINGANG
Crisis? Or inconvenience? In the end, it was my first successful experience of dealing with local government.
We came home late on a Friday afternoon, planning a quick meal and then preparing for an early morning trip to Indianapolis.
In the ancient world, they used to say, all roads lead to Rome. We live in Indiana and that old adage does not hold true in this part of the world.
Our roads do not lead to Indianapolis, not directly. They are full of coal trucks and shift change traffic. But the lack of a decent highway is just a distraction; all I really wanted to say about the road from here to Indy is that you have to start early if you want to get there on time.
So one Friday evening before we planned an early Saturday morning trip to Indy, we came home to find our water shut off.
There were obvious signs of what had happened. Mud covered a portion of the street where a water main break had erupted. Although no one was there when we arrived, it was obvious that a utility crew had been there. A barricade was up, the water was off, and for a while, that was all we could find out.
Phone calls to the water utility went unanswered, on that early Friday evening. It was after hours, the weekend had begun.
We had no water for cooking, no water for bathing, no sign of the crew that had shut off our supply, no one who would answer the phone, no hope that we could get ready for our obligation to travel the next day.
In the grand scheme of things, trying to adopt a larger-world view, it was not a crisis. Our single inconvenience was an everyday reality for families all over the world.
But it is hard to take such a larger view when the small luxury of clean water to our home has become something we take for granted.
What happened next was something I have to admit I never expected. I remembered that a city councilman lived not too far from us, and that he represented our city ward. I found his phone number, called him, and explained our situation.
An hour later, maybe even less, a utility crew came to repair the break. I was impressed, surprised, and even — I have to admit — a little uncomfortably privileged.
Is this really possible? I wondered. I appreciated what happened, no doubt about it. The councilman who helped us would have my vote for the rest of his political life.
But the nagging questions, then and now, keep creeping into my consciousness. If I had been a renter instead of a home-owner, would the result have been the same? If I spoke only Spanish? If I was new to the neighborhood? I hope so, because hope is essential.
My hope is challenged every time I put my faith in an elected official, someone who seeks to be a public servant. But my hope is strengthened by my experience, knowing that the one who promised to serve me needs to hear from me.
Simply said, I can’t expect to have water on a Friday night or justice for an immigrant family, or support for my Christian values in society — if I don’t make my voice heard.
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What is your experience of local government? Whose voice is heard?
I am reluctant to compare local government to the master of the house described by Jesus, but I am convinced the lesson is the same.
We as Christians are called to persist in knocking on the door, calling on the phone sending messages in any way we can, asking for what we need – whether that is bread for the hungry, water for the thirsty, respect for the dignity of all God’s children, or the right to life.
Nothing is accomplished except frustration, if we complain to someone else who is powerless. Nothing good will come from mutual discontent about what “they” should do. Everything may be accomplished when we identify those who have authority and power – and when we take the time to make our voices heard. That’s how we as Christian families and individuals can make a difference.
Comments are welcome at office@cfm.org or the Christian Family Movement, P.O. Box 925, Evansville, IN 47706-0925.