On the corner of Washington boulevard and Maple avenue is a church. A simple church of simple people doing simple things in a hard world. There are mothers and fathers and children and teens and a few college students too. There are blue collars and white collars and some in need of a collar, if you know what I mean.

The church was robbed twice in the last two months. The church doesn’t have enough parking. The church doesn’t have enough cushioned seats for their three Sunday services. The church doesn’t have a fancy cafe or large bookstore. The church doesn’t even have a smoke machine or fancy lights to make the worship service inviting and mysterious and contemplative like all the other churches in Los Angeles do. Nope, the church has nothing other big churches have.

Except… love.

Every Sunday morning and Wednesday night the children pile into classrooms and parents pile into the sanctuary and college students look around for faces without signs of aged weathering to learn next to. They sing together, learn together, laugh together, cry together, and give together.

The church on Washington boulevard and Maple avenue doesn’t have much, but what they do have is love. Love for God, love for each other, and love for others.

On Sunday the small church had big dreams to love others as Christ has called them to love. Love in thought, in deed, and in action. So they did. Moved by the stories from friends in Japan and the conviction impressed in the ethos of the church’s foundation, they gave.

The church who has so little, gave so much.
The church with no budget, gave.
The church with jobless attendees, gave.
The church with families losing their homes, gave.
The church with children in need of insurance, gave.

Because though the small church doesn’t have much, there are people who have less. And so they gave. And gave. And gave.

The simple church of simple people doing simple things collected thirty thousand dollars in one Sunday morning for those in Japan who lost their jobs. Their homes. Their children. Their lives.

Why? Because love requires action. And my church—the church on 931 Maple avenue—acted. We acted valiantly.

If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person? Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God.  —1 John 3:17-19

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