Walking a Dog

"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

- Galatians 6:9

I remember it was about a year into our journey at Arukah Project that we hit the proverbial “wall”. It was a huge, seemingly impenetrable, unscalable, wall. Loreal and I had been working with a new survivor with vast and extensive needs. Since we were still new, we didn’t have a lot to offer. And it seemed that when we looked around for more resources we continually came up empty. We dubbed this phenomenon as the “chasm of unmet needs”. It was crushing and overwhelming. We felt powerless on the deepest level.

The part of working in anti-trafficking that we didn’t anticipate in those early days was the sense of frustration that could lead to the conclusion that our efforts were futile and pointless, like having a single drop of water for a thousand-mile journey through the desert or giving a crumb to one dying of starvation. It seemed like no matter what we had, no matter what we did, it would never be enough.

After our tears flowed, we knew that in order to move forward we needed to re-think our goals and re-evaluate our beliefs. So, as is our pattern, we turned to the Lord for answers. Something He reminded us of in those early days was a simple principle that we have continued to hold on to. Don’t worry about what you can’t do, act on what you can do!

I think it’s easy to look around at the multitude of issues in our lives. The brokenness and lack in ourselves, our families, our community, our city, or our nation and be crushed by the enormity of the task. This can crush motivation and lead to powerlessness, discouragement. We disengage and walk away. But the truth is, there is always something that we can do.

Did you know that it is a proven scientific fact that every single action you take has a readout that affects the entire planet? YUP! I learned that from my dear friend (and brilliant Nasa scientist) Paddy. While I don’t have time here to explain the science, you can trust me on this one.

So fast forward, after four years I’d like to say that we have conquered the problems, have everything we need, and are soaring on the wings of success. But the truth is, we aren’t. Every day is a new set of challenges, every survivor has a need that we didn’t anticipate, there are still so many holes in our resources. But the pattern of “act on what you can do” has carried us.

Today, we took a client’s dog on a walk for her. We drove her to an appointment. We checked in and asked her how she was feeling. We bought her lunch and spent some time sitting by the beach laughing and sharing.

You see, transformation isn’t a “one big thing” process. It is a collection of a thousand little things, done over and over again, with love and grace. We have chosen to say yes to what we can do. And as a result, we have moved mountains and accomplished big things we never thought possible.

If you would like to find out more about acting on something you “can do”, please connect with us. We could use a thousand tiny things!