I received this in my e-mail today, and I thought that I would provide a response but more from the Christian perspective than a secular prospective. Again, as I stated yesterday, I am not going to join the debate about whether FEMA payments are valid or any social issue like that. Instead, I am choosing to make a public response to her letter (since the letter was in the newspaper in Shreveport apparently). I would not do this except that the end of her letter appears to imply that she is a Christian.
First, here is the letter:
Dear Editor,
I am a nurse who has just completed volunteer working approximately 120 hours as the clinic director in a Hurricane Gustav evacuation shelter in Shreveport, Louisiana over the last 7 days. I would love to see someone look at the evacuee situation from a new perspective. Local and national news channels have covered the evacuation and "horrible" conditions the evacuees had to endure during Hurricane Gustav. True - some things were not optimal for the evacuation and the shelters need some modification.
At any point, does anyone address the responsibility (or irresponsibility) of the evacuees?
Does it seem wrong that one would remember their cell phone, charger, cigarettes and lighter but forget their child's insulin?
Is something amiss when an evacuee gets off the bus, walks immediately to the medical area, and requests immediate free refills on all medicines for which they cannot provide a prescription or current bottle (most of which are narcotics)?
Isn't the system flawed when an evacuee says they cannot afford a $3 copay for a refill that will be delivered to them in the shelter yet they can take a city-provided bus to Wal-mart, buy 5 bottles of Vodka, and return to consume them secretly in the shelter?
Is it fair to stop performing luggage checks on incoming evacuees so as not to delay the registration process but endanger the volunteer staff and other persons with the very realistic truth of drugs, alcohol and weapons being brought into the shelter?
Am I less than compassionate when it frustrates me to scrub emesis from the floor near a nauseated child while his mother lies nearby, watching me work 26 hours straight, not even raising her head from the pillow to comfort her own son?
Why does it insense [sic] me to hear a man say "I ain't goin' home 'til I get my FEMA check" when I would love to just go home and see my daughters who I have only seen 3 times this week?
Is the system flawed when the privately insured patient must find a way to get to the pharmacy, fill his prescription and pay his copay while the FEMA declaration allows the uninsured person to acquire free medications under the disaster rules?
Does it seem odd that the nurse volunteering at the shelter is paying for childcare while the evacuee sits on a cot during the day as the shelter provides a "daycare"?
Have government entitlements created this mentality and am I facilitating it with my work?
Will I be a bad person, merciless nurse or poor Christian if I hesitate to work at the next shelter because I have worked for 7 days being called every curse word imaginable, feeling threatened and fearing for my personal safety in the shelter?
Exhausted and battered,
Sherri Hagerhjelm, RN
My response:
Dear Sherri,
In your letter, you seem to indicate that you are a Christian and therefore, I am writing this response. There are many people that have voiced some of your same opinions. Therefore, since you published your "new perspective" in a newspaper, I am choosing to respond on my blog. Specifically, I am responding to the last sentence of your letter wherein you asked if it would make you a poor Christian if you hesitate to work in the next shelter. I do not know what you mean by "poor Christian," but I am of the opinion that if God has gifted you with medical capabilities, and there is a medical need, you would at least be a disobedient Christian if you fail to provide your services the next time that it is necessary. There are several reasons for me stating this.
Number 1: You spend a lot of time in your letter focusing on the individuals instead of viewing the individuals in a biblical way. Jesus indicates that we are to treat those that we minister to as if we are ministering to Him (Matthew 25, and more specifically verses 31-46). If Jesus asked for medication, we would give it to Him no questions asked, including the question about whether or not He can afford it. I do think there is a level of discernment you have to exercise though because you do not want to provide medication to an addict, but that is not the point of that statement. If Jesus asked for shelter, we would open our arms wide instead of questioning His motives. Stop looking at these people as people with an entitlement mentality and start looking at them through gospel eyes. Yes, they may have an entitlement mentality or be lazy or be unappreciative, but that is why our servant attitude and heart will be a witness to them. Be a suffering servant doing all of this for the glory of God instead of for the people that you are helping.
Number 2: You talk about being exhausted and drained. Again, I speak for most everyone that worked in shelters (including myself) when I say that you are not alone. However, there is a verse in the Bible that speaks directly to this issue. You will find it in Galatians 6:9-10, written by perhaps one of the most abused, exhausted, battered, and person in danger that ever set out to live and preach the gospel. "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith." Galatians 6:9-10. Preach to yourself in those times that you are feeling incensed, less compassionate, exhausted, discouraged by reminding yourself of those verses. The verses do not say to do good to only those who are of the household of faith or only those who deserve it or only those that are grateful, but to everyone. I know that I had to during the midst of serving in the shelters during Gustav and Ike. It is when you stop preaching to yourself that you fall victim to looking at these people individually, full of faults, instead of looking at them through gospel eyes, as referenced in number 1 above. I had to constantly remind myself not to grow weary in doing good. I had to constantly remind myself to view the people I was serving as Jesus or at least as someone who needs to hear the gospel through my actions and attitude. I had to constantly remind myself to smile so that the evacuees could see the joy that only God gives. I had to constantly remind myself that these people are people who are at the shelter because they do not know if they are going to have a home when they leave the shelter. Yes, they may have chosen the shelter route because of the free food, free medication, free trip out of town, but the evacuees still may be returning home to nothing. That kind of stress causes some people to be unable to provide care to their children. I have seen it with my own eyes with someone I now consider a close friend. I had to help care for her child because at that time in that type of stress she was unable to. I had to realize I had no right to complain because God had placed me in that position to be able to minister in that way. Was it frustrating at times? I would be a liar if I told you know. That is why it was necessary to preach to myself. This is a habit that all Christians should incorporate into their lives. I often fail in my attitude towards the evacuees, but by God's grace, there are moments that I am able to be an example of the gospel as well.
Number 3: Your concern for safety seems to hinder your willingness to share the gospel. One of the problems in the church today is that people are too concerned for safety. I should probably limit that to the American church since there are other churches around the world who are answering the call to sacrifice safety for the spread of the gospel every day, and are gladly giving their lives for Christ. Many in the church, myself included, are too afraid to put our safety on the line for the spread of the gospel. Start trusting God and His will for your safety instead of fearing what may happen. Should you die in this type of situation, your death may result in great things for God's Kingdom. Be willing to have Paul's attitude that to live is Christ and to die is gain. Realize that God may have called you to a situation where your safety was in jeopardy to get you out of your comfort zone and to show His provision in such times. Safety is not a valid concern when turning down opportunities to serve.
Number 4: Your "new perspective" lacks all everything that a Christian should be showing the world. The glory of God is proclaimed when the world sees that we Christians are willing to serve and sacrifice even when God calls us to serve and sacrifice to those in society that may not deserve it. Isn't that what the gospel is all about? Showing grace to the world because God showed grace to us when we did not deserve it? There is a church in my town that had their facilities damaged by the evacuees from Gustav, had situations go on during Gustav that would have justified their decision to no longer be a shelter, yet they opened their doors to evacuees in Ike. There is another church in my town that made the decision not to be a shelter, despite significant financial and people resources, not to mention adequate facilities to house evacuees. Which church is portraying the glory of God to the community and to the world? Isn't it the church that makes decisions that do not make sense? Be the example that the church who opened its doors even when it would have been justified in closing them instead of the example of making a decision that makes sense to the world. You may be justified in not volunteering in the future, but choose to be the type of person who is asked why you are willing to serve again so that you can explain the gospel to someone who needs to hear it.
This response is not meant to address what is wrong with FEMA or whether FEMA needs to change. Right now, FEMA and its regulations are as good as law (if they are not law already), so complaining about FEMA is not the way to change things. Instead, it is better for the time being to follow the law, and do it with a smile and attitude that comes only from Christ. Personally, I am glad that persons who were on medication for bi-polar depression in the shelter at our church could receive their prescription for free due to the FEMA rules because I am sure that we would have had our hands full if the prescriptions were not readily available. I am grateful for the presence of the guard even if I may think that it is sad that the guard is necessary. I am also grateful that God allowed me to participate in a ministry that is hard for me and requires me to rely so much on Him and His provision. I also pray that anything that I did in my service may be used by God to change hearts and lives, realizing that He is the only one who can provide that change.
I am sure that this response may seem harsh to you at this time. However, I pray that God will allow it to be a teaching situation in spite of the sin it may contain.
Exhausted, but praising God for the privilege of service,
Cyndia Hammond
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