The Clinic is approaching this new year as an opportunity to refocus our vision for the future. As such, during the first staff meeting of 2020, we took time to review and reflect upon our Clinic values, which include: Jesus, Humility, Love, Gratitude, Daring, Wisdom, Flexibility, and Flourishing. While there are many important qualities that we hope to emulate in our actions and through our work, these eight are meant to be the driving force behind what we do. And first and foremost among these is Jesus.

We can live a story that says we are all alone, or a story that says we must keep all of our resources for ourselves, or a story that says to circle the wagons and stick with our tribes because the world is a dangerous place.

But God has given us a better story. The Bible tells us one that is filled with the beauty of God’s presence in the midst of the burdens of human existence. It’s a story that tells us that God has made us in his image and for a purpose. A purpose frustrated by sin and death, yes—but that is why we have him to rescue us from such powers and to restore things to their rightful place.

At Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic, our faith in Jesus is the foundation of all the work that we do. Inspired by a powerful sermon to create the Clinic, Abby Kuzma and the other founders relied heavily on their faith to make this dream become a reality. Abby recalls being especially encouraged by Ephesians 2:10 in the early days: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Justice is ultimately made perfect or complete in the doing of things. Jesus talked about this when he said that the one who heard what he said and then actually put it into practice is like a wise person who built his house on solid ground.

There are times when I want the whole world to stop for just one second so that I can get my bearings. But change is ever-present, and the needs of the moment continue to batter my psyche. Whether I have relational stress because of getting together with family for the holidays, or financial stress because I’ve overextended myself, or environmental stress from living in a world that badgers me about the things I should care about during the holidays—our lives are made harder by media and people beckoning us to the shoals of dark distraction.

Babra has spent much of her career working with vulnerable communities, even before coming to the United States. As an immigrant herself, she has faced many challenges that continue to influence and confirm for her that she is in the right place with the Clinic now. “My faith leads the work I do because that is my source of strength each day,” she says. “I remind myself every day that God … uplifts our spirits and others and that our faith in him provides guidance and answers where we are challenged.” Babra loves to serve clients and is currently working toward becoming an Accredited Representative so that she can assist with immigration proceedings in the future.

More and more Christians need to take responsibility by just being present to recognize that the disparity isn’t just God’s blessing. There is a lot of injustice that results in that. We need to think about, to really ask the question, what does it mean to be a great city? Or a great community? Does it mean certain people can make the city their playground or is it a place where everyone has an opportunity to participate and to be part of the rising tide of what’s going on economically?

Where you come from can say a lot about you and what you care about. What you do for a living can be a helpful pointer to deeper things about you. But, as we know, this can go very dark very fast. Whenever we think that a person’s nationality, ethnicity, or some other category can sum them up in some simplistic way, we have veered off into some dangerous territory.

“What’s great about being a church is we’re not Human Services and we don’t want to be Human Services,” says David. “A guy coming out of prison needs resources, but he doesn’t need to be resourced. He needs relationships.” For Brookside CDC, this means regular meetings where staff and those seeking assistance can be real with one another. Their men also go through an education series. “We’re checking off boxes to make sure they don’t have a reason to go back to their drugs or crime or old lifestyles, but they are walking in newness with a Bridge Coach that will support them all the way through the process,” David says.

Psalm 89:14 says “righteousness and justice are the foundation of [God’s] throne”—so far, so good. Nevertheless, the psalm goes on to say, “love and faithfulness go before you.” God is both just and loving, righteous and compassionate. And that is what he calls us to.

Carol Hartman first learned about the Clinic after a fortuitous Internet search. “I was looking for a way to do some volunteer work that was faith-based,” she says. “I went on your website and clicked on a link to volunteer.” For years, she sought opportunities that would utilize her unique set of skills. “I’ve worked in the tax world since the beginning of my career both as a CPA and as a lawyer. And I was wondering how I could best use those experiences to advance the Kingdom.”

Even awful things are better with other people. Currently, many of our clients are worried about a future that looks uncertain and bleak. Our young immigrant neighbors who have been here since they were children and are wondering why they are now considered “illegal” have just lost some hope. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (“DACA”) provided many of our immigrant youth with the ability to get a driver’s license, a job, and to pay taxes.