The world is smaller and ever more connected. We are well aware – up to the minute – of what is happening with the war in Ukraine. When there is a natural disaster in a far corner of the world, it is quickly reported and seen on social media.
It may seem like there is more destruction and violence happening than ever before. I would argue that it is not happening more. It has always happened. It is just that we are more aware than ever before.
The constant barrage of the reported human suffering leaves us fatigued. It can be overwhelming to contemplate it all and receive the constant pleas for donations and help. If you gave to every cause that you were made aware of, you would go broke.
As a way to cope, we become hardened. We become good at learning to tune it out. We might post something on our social media accounts hoping that someone else will respond. It makes us feel better about ourselves even though posting on Facebook rarely changes the situation.
Today we give up apathy! But how do we do that without becoming overwhelmed? Here are some thoughts:
Pray
Talk with God about it. Prayer is the first step towards gaining insight.
Practice intercessory prayer. This is praying for the needs of others. Prayer is not the least we can do. It is the most we can do in any situation. You may not be able to donate money to a hundred different causes. But there is nothing keeping you from praying for hundred different causes.
Pay
Because you can’t give to a hundred causes does not mean that you can’t give. Rather than support every need, look to support organizations that align with your beliefs and values that are making a difference in this world.
Support them generously and unconstrained. Rather than donate to a specific need, make your gifts undesignated. This allows those organizations to make the best use of those funds. And when you give, make sure to learn as much as you can about what the organization is doing.
Play
It is great to pray. It is great to pay. But it is even greater to play. That is to serve. It is to go where the need is and help out. We always think that God will send in professionals to take care of the matter. But in so many situations, there are no professionals. There are only ordinary people who are willing to step up and make a difference.
Get your hands dirty. More often than not, you don’t need to go on a mission trip to a foreign country. In fact, there are many times when it is more beneficial for us to just give funds to help those who are already serving in foreign mission fields than to incur the expense of going ourselves. The truth of the matter is that you have a mission field where you live.
I was once told we don’t see the need because we don’t want to see the need. We don’t see the need because we don’t want the guilt of apathy. The challenge is to open our eyes to the needs around us. Take an interest in others. Ask questions. God will reveal a place for you to serve.
There are interruptions in your day. Those interruptions may make you upset. You see interruptions as a bad thing. But maybe those interruptions are a good thing. Maybe those interruptions are God’s way of getting your attention to something he would have you do.
Greg Finke at Dwelling114.org has five questions for you to consider. You can see all five questions at https://dwelling114.org/5questionscoasters. But for the interest of this post, I want you to consider two:
- How did you see God at work in your life this week?
- What good can we do around here?
These are two good questions to consider as you go throughout your day.
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