The old saying goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Who decides what is broken?

Throughout the time spent doing mercy ministries the phenomena of “broken” makes an appearance. It might be in a septic line, a vehicle, a house, a schedule, a bike, a community, a relationship or a person. Depending on how one looks at it, everything seems as if it is broken. I have wondered whose responsibility it is to determine what is and is not broken and more importantly who is going to fix what is broken!

As time passes and we stop and look around and listen, it becomes evident that ALL people are broken. Some are more broken than others, but in general EVERYONE is broken and our financial status, education, families and regional background may or may not play a role in the degree to which we are broken. “How does one fix broken people?” is typically the question to follow. Then an additional series of thoughts and questions can fill one’s mind and one can begin to wonder why we build houses, paint and make general repairs on other houses. What is the purpose behind the various mercy ministries? Maybe it is that we aren’t intended to “fix” anyone. But when we serve one another, we let our lives touch one another, and we become aware of our wholeness in Christ and not our brokenness without Him. Mercy ministries aren’t about fixing anyone or anything, but they are about breaking and re-breaking and then letting Jesus heal.

As one spends time in mercy ministries, lots of tasks are accomplished, but those aren’t the things that stand out. It is the serving that stands out. It is the serving that happens between the old, the young, the rich and the poor who participate in mercy ministries. Not fixing, manipulating or controlling lives, but people serving and sharing life together and through it all some are healed and most discover that life with Christ is Holy.

CJ Strange is the Appalachia Field Director for Crossroads Missions, a short-term missions organization that combines the biblical principles of worship, service and discipleship by being a doorway for churches and individuals seeking ministry opportunities in places they may otherwise have difficulty serving.