Friends

Friends
How many of us have them?
Friends
Ones we can depend on
Friends
How many of us have them?
Friends
Before we go any further, let’s be
Friends*

Is a word we use everyday
Most the time we use it in the wrong way
Now you can look the word up, again and again
But the dictionary doesn’t know the meaning of friends

And if you ask me, you know, I couldn’t be much help
Because A friend is somebody you judge for yourself
Some are ok, and they treat you real cool
But some mistake kindness for being a fool

We like to be with some, because they're funny
Others come around when they need some money
Some you grew up with, around the way
And you're still real close too this very day

Homeboys through the Summer, Winter, Spring and Fall
And then there's some we wish we never knew at all
And this list goes on, again and again
But these are the people that we call friends

These are the words to the 1990 song Friends off of the “Greatest Hits” album from rap group Whodini. It is one of my favorite songs from this group after, Freaks Come Out at Night.

I thought of this song while sitting in the Bible Study session lead by Dr. John Perkins at the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA) Annual Conference in Chicago, yesterday. It came to mind when he spoke of Association. He said, “CCDA is a place for authentic relationships. CCDA is a place to do life together.”

I love CCDA. And I especially love their conferences. I love it because it is a place where I don’t have to explain myself. If I bust out crying they understand. We share the same joys, sorrows and frustrations. CCDA is about Kingdom. This is an association where we worship our God across denominational and racial, economic and political lines. It is a beautiful place. We are all here for the same reason, to be refreshed, to be safe.

The people here are my family and my friends because we share like experiences no matter where we live within the country. We all fight for the same causes. I can depend on the people here.

I wish I didn’t have to wait so long to get with my friends. Pretty much it is once a year. It would be great if my friends were closer, like in San Antonio. Wouldn’t it be great to have CCDA friends in San Antonio?

CCDA was started by a group of friends that called a meeting in the O’Hare Airport 20 years. I’ve only been a part of CCDA since 2001 when a friend took me to my very first CCDA conference in Dallas. Back when I joined CCDA there weren’t any member organizations from San Antonio. And I’ve been on a mission to let everyone in San Antonio serving in urban ministry know about this association.

No, they don’t have any money to give away. No, they don’t bring you to their conferences for free. The books aren’t free. Nothing is free. But I believe that I get everything I pay for by being a part of this association. I get camaraderie; I get love and friendship from like minded people that understand that our calling as Christians is beyond the church walls.

What you may not understand is that Christian Community Development is a very lonely profession. Most of the time people don’t understand it or it just plain makes them uncomfortable. Because to be in Christian Community Development means getting beyond one’s self and choosing to make friends with those outside of your comfort zone. It may mean going to a places where our issues confront us in the faces of those we serve. It means getting dirty. Christian Community Development exposes us for who we really are, it makes us realize, whether spoken or not, that we are not as loving and as Christ like as we thought. So, most retreat from this type of work and just do the charitable thing at Christmas and back to school and the occasional mission trip to the inner city.

Christian Community Development is a lifestyle. It is fighting for those that can’t fight for themselves. It is about living among the people, reconciliation, just distribution of resources, leadership development, listening to the community and empowerment and it is church-based.

Those that are in the dirt every day need fellowship. Periodically, they need a safe place to land. And this is where CCDA comes into the picture.

There is a small group of people that have been trying to make this happen in San Antonio. They are trying to get CCDA to San Antonio but they need your help.

This type of association can only happen with those that are willing to be a part of something bigger than their individual organizations and churches. We need those that know and understand that everyone needs support, encouragement, hope, family…a friend.

But we have to choose to do this. We have to decide for ourselves. Like the song says, Friends, how many of us have them, someone that we can depend on. And before we can go any further, truly be effective in the city of San Antonio let’s be friends.

Visit the CCDA website at ccda.org and leave a comment if you are interested in something like this, so that as we move forward on a planning a local conference we can get information to you.