Finding the lost, the broken, the hungry, the prisoner

A person sits on the ground with worn shoes, a sign reading "Help Please," and a hat with money on the pavement.

By Ken Howard, founder and president

When the song of the angels is stilled, when the star in the sky is gone,
when the kings and princes are home, when the shepherds are back with their flocks,
the work of Christmas begins:
to find the lost, to heal the broken, to feed the hungry, to release the prisoner,
to rebuild the nations, to bring peace among the people, to make music in the heart.
– Howard Thurmond, theologian, educator, and civil rights leader

In our blog posts for this month, we have been meditating on Howard Thurmond’s poem, “The Work of Christmas.”

Today, I am focusing on the middle passage of the poem, in which Thurmond begins by describing the work of Christmas as:

“to find the lost, to heal the broken, to feed the hungry, to release the prisoner…”

What strikes me in this passage is the word, “FIND.”

To minister to the lost, the broken, the hungry, and the prisoner, we first have to find them – praying as we move our feet, as the African proverb says. Getting outside the walls of our worship space, talking to people about needs and dreams, and addressing them.

FaithX can’t move your feet for you, can’t leave the building for you, can’t connect with the people for you, can’t help you walk alongside them to address the needs and dreams.

But we can help you locate the neighborhoods where you are likely to find people facing those issues.

The Lost (Disconnected Youth)

A map shows San Francisco Bay Area, highlighting youth disconnection rates. Different shades indicate percentages of youth not in school or labor force.

The Hungry (Food Deserts)

Map depicting food insecurity in the San Francisco Bay Area, highlighting food deserts and insecure regions in varying colors for easy interpretation.

The Prisoners (Prisons)

Map of San Francisco Bay Area showing cities, highways, and water bodies. Labeled "MissionMaps for Faith Communities" by The FaithX Project.

And those are just three examples. We can show you where to find people with disabilities, people likely to become homeless, people below the poverty line, people without health insurance, and more.

With all that is going on in the world, especially the unjustified killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, following the unjustified killing of Keith Porter in Los Angeles, a blog about using MissionMaps to learn about the needs of neighborhoods may seem small. But reflecting on the Herculean effort of caring for community members in need in Minneapolis, which took place in the chaos after those killings, proactively identifying where the greatest needs are located may be of some small help.

Want more information on how we can help you find the people God is calling you to serve? Contact us at info@faithx.net or learn more about our services here.