Lori and I just returned from New Orleans where we had the opportunity to meet with the TORCH Missions board. It was a great few days with old friends and exciting news about the on-going work in Honduras. God is doing amazing things there and we are blessed to be part of it.

We stayed right on Bourbon Street and enjoyed some great food at a couple of terrific restaurants. The French Quarter is certainly a very unique environment. It was my first overnight stay there and I must say that I was quite amazed at the variety of lifestyle we found. I am grateful that we saw very few children as it would be difficult to have ready explanations for all that we encountered. Tourism at its finest including all the unique shopping and food you could hope for. You can also find palm readers and fortune tellers along sidane multiple strip joints, adult toy stores and more bars offering live music than I've ever seen in one place (except maybe NYC). Whenever I am confronted by such an open exhibition of sinful activity I can't help but wonder about that tired question, "What would Jesus do?", and I begin asking myself "what should I do?"

I think that there was a time when I would have felt that I didn't belong there and as a Christian I should avoid places like the French Quarter at all costs. I also think that there was a time when I definitely should have steered clear because of my own desire to do the same sinful activity we saw there. I'm not so sure anymore. I know that all of us realize that Jesus was constantly engaged in life with those who were "sinners, tax collecters, and prostitutes." I found myself thinking about what ministry there in the French Quarter would look like. There are people there with broken lives and the same longing for love and acceptance that all of us feel. I didn't think so much of the tourists as they will come and go, but of the employees and local yokels that hang out there on a regular, every day basis. Who is showing the love and grace of God to them? Who is helping them deal with the loneliness and despair that our lives of sin ultimately lead to? Who is there to walk beside them in this journey that we call life? Shouldn't it be those of us that have embraced the love and grace already? Shouldn't it be those of us who have found relief for the loneliness and despair caused by our own sin? Shouldn't it be those of us who are already walking together trying to find our way in this life?

My guess is that most of the people we saw who were actively participating in the nightlife of Bourbon St. will not darken the doors of their local worship establishment. Should we not go to them and allow God to use us to exhibit his love and grace? For me it is an interesting question and one I will be praying for God's wisdom about as I attempt to answer it.