A Tribute to 1808
On September 18, 2016, I traveled 2,283 miles to live with a group of strangers and serve the city of Seattle alongside them. I could have never imagined the impact that move would make.
Serve Seattle is an urban missions program for young adults. In short, we love people with everything we have.
See that picture? Those are a few world changers. Not because they have an overload of money because, let’s face it, we’re all broke. Not because they’re famous or have a high ranking position in a business or the government. Not because they’re all geniuses.
They are all changing the world because they understand that people deserve to be fully known and fully loved.
When I walked into 1808 18th Avenue, I didn’t know what was going to happen. I honestly thought I’d be with a group of people that were super Christians and had everything figured out.
Then I heard their stories.
Stories of mental illness, rejection, death, addiction, eating disorders, and broken families.
At the same time though, I heard stories of hope, love, adoption, healing, life, acceptance, and joy.
See, in the midst of every single person’s hopelessness, there was Jesus. In the midst of brokenness, there was a relationship that reminded them of their worth.
Because of that, these people understand how to serve. They understand that over everything, relationships are the most important.
We built relationships with the people we served and it was no longer us and them but rather it was just us. They became our friends, and when your friend needs you, you help them.
We also built relationships with each other. These people are some of my best friends.
We walked though hell together. We saw each other at our best and our worst. We prayed together. We cried together. We went on adventures together.
We did life together.
1808 is more than a house number.
1808 represents a group made up of strangers that turned into a family.
