Kensington and Samaria

I graduated nursing school in May of 2021. During the covid pandemic. That didn’t matter, I was going to be a medical missionary and was ready to go to whatever country the Lord wanted to send me to, pandemic or not. Or so I thought. I applied to Samaritan’s Purse to be an intern on their medical disaster relief team, wanting to be launched overseas. I was pretty confident I would be selected after making it through a couple rounds of interviews. I was then confused and disappointed when I was the 4th candidate of only 3 spots available. Once rejected, I finally had a peace I hadn’t had for months during the interview process, although I was frustrated with the Lord. What in the world? I have wanted to be a medical missionary since I was 16, and I thought this was the plan.

Then the Lord spoke during my first job He provided for me as a nurse in my hometown, where I had somehow been blind to the existing physical and spiritual needs all around me – the needs in my own community where I was born and raised: “And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” – Acts 1:8. Lansing, Michigan was my Jerusalem, and this is where the Lord wanted me to start. Over the years, he broke my heart for my community, and I began to love my city, praying He would help me love it more. Then I went back to Family Nurse Practitioner school in Detroit, Michigan and ended up with a job on the opposite side of the state in Grand Rapids. My prayer became “Ok God, help me fall in love with Judea now”. Judea was the area surrounding Jerusalem. For me, it was these communities at work and school, in these cities surrounding my central location of Lansing. Fast forward to today – the Lord has given me the opportunity to be a student with SMI and come to Kensington, Philadelphia. I came here because I wanted to learn, serve, connect, and grow. Personally, professionally, and spiritually.

It was the first Sunday of SMI at Oasis church. A very small church plant, with a sum total of 10 congregation members, 4 of them being us SMI students. Pastor Rob read aloud “Now Jesus had to go through Samaria”. He stopped, looked up at us, and said “Jesus did not have to go through Samaria. He could have gone around Samaria. That is what everyone else did. Samaria was not a desirable place, and the people of Samaria were looked down on by the Jews. But Jesus purposely chose to go through Samaria. To meet with the Samaritan women, to touch her life and bring salvation. Kensington is like Samaria. People go around it. But not you guys. Thank you for choosing to come through Samaria”.

These words rang through my mind as I remembered Acts 1:8. “Wow God, thank you for choosing to go through Samaria and for bringing me to Samaria. Help me be your witness here in Samaria”. With this in mind, I began thinking I was there to help bring salvation to Samaria, to minister to “Samaritans”. But after a week of door to door health screen outreaches in the community, one particular man and his wife stood out to me. This man was part of the “Santaria” religion. A religion we were taught as being idol worship of saints, with dark, cult-like roots. To be totally honest, although I knew the One in me is greater than the one in the world, I was scared as I knocked on this door with a horseshoe hanging above it, and money coins outside the door – signs of a Santaria home. A Spanish-speaking man opened the door, and I asked if he would like a health screen. He smiled, and welcomed us in. From the moment we entered the air conditioned home from the 90+ degree street, this man began serving us. “Would you like coffee with sugar or without?”. Not even “do you want coffee”, but “I’m making you coffee, how would you like it?”. He gave us the best seats, brought us ice cold water, made sure I had a foot stool for my feet. How was this man, the one associated with a cult-like religion, the most hospitable and welcoming person I had met? As I reflected on this, the story of the Good Samaritan wrecked me. I have heard this story a million times. But when a man was walking down the road and was robbed, beat up, and left for dead, who was it who came to his aide, tenderly dressing his wounds, caring for his needs, and ensuring his wellbeing? It was not the priest. Not the Levite. Not the religious person. It was a Samaritan, who had pity on him and showed compassion. This man was a neighbor who loved others as he loved himself. I was completely humbled. Here I am, the Christian. Being totally out served and shown compassion and hospitality by those who lived in Kensington. Over and over again. I was welcomed, shown hospitality by these strangers, shown compassion. It was then that I realized – God builds his Kingdom not just in Samaria, but by Samaritans. It was also a Samaritan leper who was the only one to return to Jesus, throwing himself at His feet in grateful worship, when he was cleansed from his deadly illness (Luke 17:16). This paralleled how I often saw those in Kensington readily recognize their physical and spiritual need, welcoming prayer, scripture, and often times the gospel message. I was reminded of the words of Jesus from the sermon on the mount that we had been studying as our text from SMI: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5:3). Those who recognize their spiritual poverty. These are the ones who inherit the kingdom. The self-righteousness, savior complex, “too good for you”, or “you need me” attitude, all have to go. This is not the way of the kingdom of God. You know how Jesus built the kingdom in Samaria? By the Samaritan woman sharing her story with fellow Samaritans: “many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of this woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did” (John 4:39).

Jesus is already working in Samaria, in the lives of Samaritans to bring him glory and bring others to himself. Jesus is already working in Kensington, in the lives of community members there that He is transforming and sending out into their communities. And by those who he calls to go through Samaria – a place others go around – that He calls his children to go through. The truth is, God doesn’t need me. Kensington doesn’t need me. Rather, we all need Jesus. And the good news is, He is already there, hard at work, building His kingdom. Jesus is working in the lives of “Samaritans” to teach “Jews” how to love their neighbors, and to share their testimonies in their communities. And he is sending “Jews” to be a light to the “Gentiles”, not to go around them.

I learned so much from this community of Kensington. How to love my neighbors as I love myself, and how to be broken at my Savior’s feet in gratitude for saving me from my leprosy of sin and spiritual sickness that I was powerless to save myself from. The gospel unites all of us at the foot at the cross – it recognizes the image of God in each person, while acknowledging the sin of mankind that leaves us all equally broken. The gospel is the good news that Jesus – God himself – out of the great love he had for us, came to man, both Jew and Gentile alike. To rescue us from the punishment, power, and eventually the presence of sin by his blood shed as payment for us, and by his resurrection from the grave. This free gift of forgiveness and salvation is offered to ALL who repent and put their faith in Christ alone to be saved. Romans 10:11-13 says: “As scripture says ‘“Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame”’. For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile – the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved”. How then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written : “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”’.  And Colossians 3:11 says “Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised, barbarian Scythian, salve, free; but Christ is all, and in all”.

Jesus is the one who saves, and uses, both Jew and Gentile to build His kingdom. It is Christ in all working through all, sending us all out to transform each other more into His image. Jesus, thank you that our only boast is You, and in Your gospel of grace that saved us. Keep teaching me. Keep building your kingdom in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Build your kingdom in my heart, and send us out to build it alongside our neighbors.