I am fighting a dragon with toothpicks!

Today I am tired! So very tired! There are wars in far away countries that bring back the hauntings of the Second World War. There are shootings that leave dead people in the wake in Sacramento, Dallas and many other places. There is an overall exhaustion in this country that is creeping into my soul as well. There are people I encounter every day that are hurting and struggling to make ends meet, trying to keep their own soul alive and hurting beyond my ability to help.
I am tired!
Our little non-profit is trying to make a dent in this broken and beautiful world, but some days it just seems like we are just standing there with our little toothpicks in hand, trying to slay a large dragon. Do we make a difference? Does the stab against poverty make a dent? Does the jab for access to resources break the skin? Does the care for children poke at the heart of the dragon? Does the resource to the senior poke a hole?
I am tired!
It costs a chunk of money every day to run LifeLine and it seems impossible to raise that money, we try to be as frugal as possible, accepting any donations of goods that can stretch our finances. But it is so exhausting! I would rather spend my time engaging with community, helping change systems, address under lying causes and help under-resourced neighborhoods to thrive, expanding our work into another neighborhood. So I pick up my toothpick and try to make the dragon bleed just a bit.

But I don’t want to end with lament only, because I know that there are others who also pick up their toothpicks to fight the dragon. Non profits who work tirelessly to help people, government agencies who want to break the cycle, faith communities who open their doors, individuals who donate to important causes. Together, we are picking up our toothpicks and maybe if we come together we can develop a strategic way to slay the dragon.

There is an old Christian song ’the warrior is a child’ -“lately I’ve been winning battles left and right. But even winners can get wounded in the fight. People say that I’m amazing strong beyond my years, but they don’t see inside of me I’m hiding all the tears. They don’t know that I go running home when I fall I fall down, they don’t know Who picks me up when no one is around. I drop my sword and cry for just a while. ‘Cause deep inside this armor the warrior is a child.”

If you see me today, know that I am picking up my toothpick, but that I might need your help to keep my arm extended, fighting the dragon.