The Dump

Words really can’t describe the dump. I don't even think pictures do the job. But just think about the word before you look at the pictures. Dump; A place where unwanted things end up. Toxic waste. Paper. Plastic Cardboard. Snotty Kleenex. Dirty diapers. Broken glass. Dust. Dirt.

Hardly a place any of us could ever imagine LIVING and WORKING yet thousands of people do. Why did God have mercy on you and me and allow us to live in middle class America while thousands live in a dump earning $7 a week going through trash? I think some might look at these pictures and think to themselves, “well, I’m glad that’s not me” Or “they aren’t my problem” or “well you can’t feel guilty just because you have money and they don’t. That's just the way it is” But all over the Bible God tell us to care for those in need. Seriously ALL OVER THE BIBLE. How can we claim to be believers of the Word and not also be doers?

In “Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger” Ronald J. Sider says “Instead of fostering more compassion toward the poor, riches often harden the hearts of the wealthy.” Luther said, “Religion that gives nothing, costs nothing and suffers nothing is ultimately worth nothing.” James confirms this in James 2:17 when he says, “In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accomplished by action, is dead.” Then my favorite verse in James (1:27) says, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this; to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself pure from being polluted by the world.”

Read that last verse again. Are we really keeping ourselves pure from being polluted by the world when we are consumed with Hollywood, TV and the internet? Do we genuinely care about orphans and widows?

Why are some Christians wealthy and some aren't? Why do you think God gave us money? So we can hoard it, buy more "stuff," or maybe, just maybe the whole "tis better to give than to receive is actually true? Maybe God blesses some of us with more wealth than others so that we can be a blessing to others and therefore be blessed. Sounds crazy, I know. Personally, ministering to the people in the dump brought me so much more joy than "shopping" has EVER brought me.

The dump is said to be about 40 acres in size and houses 1/3 of the country’s trash. People have been living and working there for 20 to 40 years reducing the country’s waste by 1 million pounds a day.

“For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” Luke 18:25