Sunday at River Stone Community Church our pastor taught from Luke 19: 41-48. The passage opens with, “And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it. . . “, referring to Christ weeping over Jerusalem. At the close of service we were given construction paper, crayons and the challenge to draw a picture of what causes us to weep for our city {San Marcos}. As I watched everyone complete their drawings and display them on the walls, I wept. I wept not for the city of San Marcos, but I wept for my lack of compassion over the plight of those in my city.
San Marcos has been my home for seven years and yet my heart is numb to the needs of those whom I live among. Why is that? My numbness does not stem from a hard heart. My heart is tender for many people and circumstances: I weep over disabled orphans in China. I weep over the struggling masses in Haiti. I weep over the sons of a dear friend. I weep over aids babies in Africa. Why do I not weep over my own city?
There is much to weep over in this city: San Marcos High School overflows with pregnant teenagers, young adults struggle with gender confusion, unsure whether they are male or female, casual sex with strangers is considered a sport, elementary school children come home to houses devoid of adult supervision, families rely on the food bank for daily sustenance. Right in our own city there is poverty, domestic violence, high unemployment, along with neglected and abandoned children. Thousands of students come to Texas State seeking an education. Along with that education many of them abandon their Christian upbringing, trading truth for selective morals. Why does none of this cause me to weep?
Unfortunately I do not have the answers. All I can do is repent for turning a blind eye, and make this song my prayer, “Break my heart for what breaks yours, every thing I am for your kingdom’s cause, as I walk from earth into Eternity.” (Hosanna by Hillsong United)