Under The Overpass, Mike Yankoski

Mike Yankoski’s Under the Overpass, which allows for an inside look at homelessness and the way they are perceived, is truly insightful. Most everyone can relate to the panhandler on the corner or the disheveled individual walking down the street or sleeping on a city bench. I, for one, am guilty of averting my gaze as I walk past or anxiously await the red light to turn green.

What is extremely eye-opening is that these individuals are shunned, even by many who consider themselves part of the Christian community. It causes one to pause and be introspective to ponder the question of whether we are following God’s command to love our neighbor as ourselves.

Yankoski gives names to the homeless so that we can see them as fellow human beings and not just a filthy person placed in our path to create annoyance or an uncomfortable feeling. By acknowledging that these individuals are NOT less than human, we are forced to reconcile if we are treating them as an equal. The fact that even the Christian community, which I count myself a part of, tends to stay as far removed from the reality that there are millions of suffering individuals whose everyday existence is comprised of finding a meal and a safe place to sleep, is sad. It’s strange that we feel satisfied when we sponsor mission trips but avoid the simple act of buying a meal for the “bum” we pass on the way to work every day.

Yes, it’s important to congregate with other Christians in fellowship to worship the Creator but we are completely missing the point if our actions don’t follow through. As I Corinthians 13 states, If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. You have the choice, take up the call and act or give lip service to the Lord!