"To meet people where they are" is more than a sentence fragment; it is a design for harmonious living.
The phrase was spoken by Ginger Luetkemeyer in a story headlined, "This VBS offers "special' message" in Monday's News Tribune.
Luetkemeyer is director of St. John's Lutheran Church's Vacation Bible School program, "God's Great Rescue." Last week, the Schubert church brought the summer Bible school to the Special Learning Center, which instructs students with special needs.
Her entire quote was: "It's all part of making a church friendly to all people, to be aware that everybody has needs or special circumstances you may not understand. They might be hurting on the inside or have challenges physically, behaviorally or with communication.
"It isn't about special programming all the time; it's about understanding what their challenges are and doing what church should strive to do - to meet people where they are."
Reaching out to people where they are is desirable not only for congregations, but for people everywhere.
We frequently interact with people without knowing "where they are."
Did the grocery checker who seems distant just receive a rejection from a preferred college? Did the driver who appears rude and impatient just learn of a death in the family?
Do we rush to judgment about their behavior without knowing whether they, as Luetkemeyer said, "are hurting on the inside"?
The argument can be made that, at times in life, we all have special needs or circumstances. At times, we all hurt on the inside and face challenges physically and behaviorally.
At those times, how comforting and uplifting it would be if others simply would meet us where we are.
That "special" message deserves to be spread widely, well beyond a Vacation Bible School or a church congregation.