“And the light shines in the darkness; and the darkness does not overcome it.” (John 1:5)
You may have seen, and certainly must have heard about the sharp rise in graffiti activity in the City of Holland in the last month or so. Someone or some group out there wants to make their mark and be heard. Their anonymous ‘tagging’ on every kind of building in our downtown has left residents with a haunted, invaded feeling. Who did that? Why did they? For whom is it intended? Whose property will be next? Who is on the move? This disconcerted feeling lingers even after the scrawls are painted out, fingers have been wagged, and the police have been called.
Negative, destructive activities like graffiti grab our attention and get us talking. Thinking. What does this mean to us? And even while we too are perturbed about the graffiti, we want to speak up and point out that signs of the Kingdom of God are all around us too. So let’s point them out and let them make us think! I think of the woman who gave away one of her coats to someone who had none; about a man who received help to replace the roof of his porch and avoid a fine from the city; about a neighbor bringing over a meal and initiating a friendship; about the folks I’ve seen shoveling their neighbors’ driveways, just to be nice. Shine a light on those things! Let the Light shine through you. Say thank you to those whose light you see. What else have you seen?
One a much more practical note, as a simple response to the recent vandalism, WSN is rallying neighbors to leave an [LED] porch light on and show our care for the spaces around our homes.
~Andrew Spidahl & Janelle Lopez-Koolhaas, Neighborhood Connectors