Genesis and Genesis

I wish, that I could really tell you,
All the things that happened to me
And all that I have seen,
A world full of people their hearts full of joy,
Cities of light with no fear of war,
And thousands of creatures with happier lives,
And dreams of a future with meaning and no need to lie,
No need to hate,
No need to hide.

Genesis – Keep It Dark

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 1:1

Before I knew Genesis the book, I knew Genesis the band.  And there were certain songs, such as “Keep It Dark,” that inspired me to consider and seek to build a different world then the one I saw before me. Hearts full of joy. No fear of war. Happier lives. No need to lie. No need to hate. No need to hide.

Then, when I finally got to the Bible in college, and I turned to the first book and the first scripture, the first thing we learn about God is that He is CREATIVE. It means that if you start at the beginning of the journey there is a sense of new possibilities, new avenues, new approaches, new learnings, new practices. We do not always need to fall prey to the “Status Quo.”

And what God originally created was good. This is not a theological post, so no need for me to dive in too deep as to what happened in Genesis 3 to Revelation. Let’s stay with the thought of God’s never-ending ability to create something good. This is the sustaining thought behind our work.

For me – I have lived in a bit of the “upside down” of Santa Barbara County. The world flipped for me in 2005, and I realized that for many in our County, it is life or death on a daily basis. In one year, I personally experienced seven of my street friends at Pershing Park die while homeless – many at the same park where we shared a meal every Wednesday night. One night, I called 911 twice – for a street friend considering suicide on the train tracks, and later that same evening for some children on the Westside who were fleeing domestic violence in their home. I had to explain to the police officer who came for both calls that this is not a usual exercise for me.

And honestly, I was not armed with enough professional training to deal with the populations I was working with – and so glad now that we have an ever-increasing number of professional at work on the streets and in the neighborhood. But I knew enough to dial 911. I can say that those two calls literally saved three lives that night.

We need to consider if we trust that God of the beginning, the God who creates good things, can create neighborhoods where homelessness, domestic violence, exploitation, and a multitude of other societal sins and ills are a thing of the past.

I have personally experienced countywide and neighborhood collaboratives that have reduced these impacts by pulling together.

On State Street in Santa Barbara City – reducing homelessness and the impacts of homelessness on lower State Street by 30% in two months – as a quick pilot of what working together can accomplish. Ten individuals were housed with the help of City Net.

In Santa Maria, we housed 20 chronically homeless individuals, high utilizers of the emergency room and the least likely to accept services. We partnered with multiple stakeholders and a grant through Dignity Health.

In Lompoc, through a partnership with multiple agencies and utilizing AmeriCorps members, we helped house 20+ individuals over two years.

Success is even greater now with more funding coming in and new models such as DignityMoves – but these were the early days where we had to show success on a shoestring budget.  We had to push and pursue a new CREATIVE vision of what can be accomplished and not wait while people suffered on the margins.

I can say thank you to Genesis and the book of Genesis. “Keep It Dark” fueled me with a vision of what could be and a world that could be. Genesis 1 taught me that the very nature and work of God is all about creating “collective good.” Win-wins for everyone is possible. In fact, the more we collaborate and the less we argue is key to co-creating with God to see a new, flourishing neighborhood.

Remember this: the first thing God told us about His nature is that He is Creative, and His works are Good.