From New Mexico thru Arizona to Las Vegas

well, well, well;
so, i started this journey with an idea to document the answer to a question; 'where can i find God in the place where you live?'
it became a big monster type of thing. and then after seeking sane counsel, it became about me resting after graduating from seminary. that lasted about 6 hours.
this trip has become more about meeting the people and documenting their answers to that question. it's no longer about the scenery. there is beautiful country in the southwest of this country. but...
i'm standing in the motel/hotel room in gallup nm and feeling pain in my heart. i ask angela and laura if they can feel the pain of the place. i have started to feel with a different heart and to see with different eyes - and it hurts. i had to ask God where was he. it was just overwhelming. people are surviving, not living. there's not enough water to water crops, homeless people are invisible (who wants to see hungry dirty people anyway), and depending on the tribe, i am made to feel like an outside nuisance.
i hate my own personal prejudices and despise it in others.
in some places it's all about the money - damn the soul.
flesh screams across big screens on the las vegas boulevard and children walk under the lights of it all. alcohol propels people across the streets and into casinos (i'm surprised i've not seen a slot machine next to a toilet).
but we want our freedom
we want our rights
freedom from what and the right to do what?
it's monday.
i found God at the arizona border in the midst of a group of young people (riding across america in a bus). and sunday morning i sang songs in a church (baptist)
God's working out my own prejudices about white people, and baptists, and homeless people, and church in general. there is so much pain in the faces of people. this trip is not about finding a right answer, it's about giving people a voice. a voice that may have been taken from them.
no cliche answers allowed. where is God anyway when life isn't working? it's different for each person.