We are blessed to see lots of progress. But today was not one of the days we saw much of it. In prayer time, one young man's marriage was falling apart. Another client has run out of his meds and his mental state is deteriorating. He still wants to take meds but hasn't yet done anything about securing another month's supply. As we walked our blocks, we ran into a client who just quit his job, after celebrating just a few months ago a big promotion. He's now considering returning to the street life. Setbacks happen. Getting to the street is not a single decision or result. It's a long string of decisions and actions or inactions. And the decision to get off the street rarely happens in a straight line. It's up and down. Fits and starts.
It gave me reason to remember adages I learned from my mentors early in my training. "You can't want something more than the client." If we are "invested" more in the outcome that then client, we're in trouble. And from mission training, "Mission moves at the pace of the people" is something my mentor taught me. Missionaries cannot sweep in with their money and their beliefs and hope anything good will happen. Mission moves at the pace of relationship building and readiness of those served.
There will be days of setbacks and days where I must reinvest myself in new solutions. I wait on the Lord. He is able to do all things. And he works all things for good. So we will wait and pray for a different day, one in which clients want more for themselves.
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