Poor people cannot eat theology. This is something I’ve told myself since becoming a pastor. It’s a reminder that what I say from the pulpit has to meet people where they are.

This is not to claim that my words are somehow food for people or will change their lives. It is simply telling me to be real. As a pastor, I have to speak to the realities people face.

I am constantly reminded that not all realities are the same.

Growing up in the church, I have always been fascinated by the concept of salvation. God saving us from death and sin is the highlight of the gospel. One day, all pain and suffering will cease, and God will make things right. The first shall be last and the last shall be first.

I have clung to this promise and used it to encourage my congregation and myself. But how long will it take for it to happen? Is this promise actually our reality?

One of my biggest critiques of evangelical Christianity is that it is so focused on the endgame. It makes the spiritual much more important than the physical. Our bodies will perish, but our souls will live forever.

But what does that do for us now? Is the gospel of Jesus — the Good News — only good when we die?

It is tempting to treat the gospel like a spiritual version of a 401(k) retirement fund. It’s all about the future. At least that has been my experience.

In her book, Sisters in the Wilderness: The Challenge of Womanist ­God-Talk, womanist theologian Delores Williams examines the theological concepts of liberation and salvation. Using the perspective of Black women in the United States, she argues that God is not always the liberating God we want God to be. At times, God is a God of survival.
She looks to Genesis and uses the story of Hagar, who was not freed from slavery. She did not experience liberation, or what some would call salvation.

She was thrust into the wilderness with her newborn child. God’s promise for tomorrow would not have been useful to Hagar.

The promise that was useful was that God would be with her in the ­wilderness. God promised to be in the struggle with her. God would help her survive.

We cannot just go up to people who are suffering and tell them God has something for them in the future. We cannot just say that one day they will be free.

We — the church — need to share the good news for today: God is with the suffering and the oppressed. God sees and cares about the pain they face now.

This message is not only for those who are suffering. It is for all of us. Those of us in the pews. Those of us who are not on the streets. Those of us who come from privilege.

We are called to care about the ones God cares about. We need to be where God is.

When we read the stories of Jesus, it’s easy to focus on Jesus’ words. But let’s also look at his actions. When people needed food, he fed them. When people were possessed by demons, he cast them out. When people were excluded, he welcomed them.

Jesus not only cared about people’s spiritual futures. He met their immediate, physical needs. That is what “God with us” means. Our God is with the oppressed and helps them to survive. To keep on keeping on. Living day by day.

The first thing we have to do in this life is survive. This is God’s promise for today. Yes, we get glimpses of liberation and salvation. But we are never fully free from the damage human sin has caused.

What, then, is the work of the church? Our job is to help people survive. To give folks a glimpse of the promise that God has for them right now.

So, churches, keep those ministries for the houseless going. Continue to be sanctuaries for our undocumented siblings. Continue to meet the needs of your community.

We know liberation is coming one day. But right now we need to help people survive.

God is with us in this work. God
is with the suffering. God keeps
God’s promises for tomorrow and
for today.