'There's always an excuse not to help'2

Services for Christopher B. Berry, 29, Houston, formerly of Tyler, are scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday at Mount Zion CME Church.

Burial will be in Johnson Cemetery under direction of Brooks-Sterling & Garrett Funeral Directors, Tyler.

Mr. Berry died Nov. 10, 2009, in Houston. He was born April 20, 1980, in Gladewater. He attended Chapel Hill High School, Fort Scott Community College and Southern University. He was a member of Mount Zion CME Church.

Survivors include his mother, Rosalind Berry, Tyler.

- Tyler Morning Telegraph

And that's that. A few sterile lines about the former FSCC baseball player about whom I wrote in my October 24 article. If you remember, Chris's insidious life of drugs had led him under a bridge, his address for the past two years. When my son, Adam, attempted to help him get a fresh start last summer, Chris chose his best friend, cocaine, instead of a bus trip home.

And now he's dead. And I wonder if I could have done something to help. Dave and I actually discussed driving to Houston to look for Chris to bring him back here to Fort Scott. But...well, you know...with our busy schedules and such...maybe later when things were less hectic. After all, there was the musical and the Jason Aldean concert and then Thanksgiving and Christmas and, oh my! How could we possibly fit Chris in?

I realize Fort Scott might not have been the answer, but still I ask this question: How could I NOT fit him in?

Excuses. There's always an excuse NOT to help, isn't there?

It's someone else's problem. Finances are tight right now. I've tried to help before and been shot down. I didn't get him in the mess he's in. No one ever helped me when I was in need. I'm scared to take the risk. What if I'm taken advantage of? I tithe -- isn't that enough? There are counselors for people like that. I'll just pray for him.

Two thousand years ago a baby was born whose primary mission was to save me and you. Period. God "put on skin" and came to this sinful world to bring us a fresh start, to teach us about selfishness and give us hope. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus is His name.

Jesus would never have used any of the excuses we do. He would have scoffed at such Pharisaical ramblings and figured out a way to offer help. Jesus would have made Chris a disciple. Or at least a convert. But He never would have dismissed him.

Many might argue that there are plenty of needy ones right here in Fort Scott, and they are right. When I went to the Beacon to select which families the Thespian club would support this Christmas season, there were pages of names from which to choose. This past weekend, 15 of my drama students and I went shopping for six of them. We ran into Karen Curran who was doing the same with her National Honor Society students. My group came back to my house to eat chili and wrap presents and play games. That was painless; in fact, it was fun.

Traveling to Houston to rescue Chris would have cost me something, and I wasn't willing to pay the price. I didn't realize that fitting Chris into my holiday schedule might have been my best opportunity to fit Jesus in.

If you have the same chance I did, to make a difference in someone's life during this Christmas season, I pray you don't make the same choice I did. I pray you choose Jesus.