As a Christian I 100 % believe that God has called us to be the voice of Christ. The Bible says in Proverbs 31, "Speak out on behalf of the voiceless, and for the rights of all who are vulnerable. Speak out in order to judge with righteousness and to defend the needy and the poor." These days it's actually very easy to do this. From blogging to pretty much all forms of social media, we can share any news and give our opinions on any matter at pretty much any moment. We can share our hearts with hundreds of people at a time, and it's all right at our finger tips. We hashtag things to be a part of movements and make passionate statements that get all the attention we could ever want. But my question is this - Are we actually ALWAYS deeply moved by and passionate about ALL these things, or are we just buying into the movements that say we should and can have a voice because it makes US feel and look good? I've asked myself this question a lot. Christ DOES tell us to be His voice. The problem with social media though, is that it allows us to speak out about things or stand up for things without ever having to actually DO anything. It convinces us that by "being the voice" for a certain race, person, or organization, that we are doing good or making a difference. Maybe we are in some way! But there's a much greater call in our lives, and it's very often being ignored. Christ also calls us to be His "hands and feet". Some may argue that being a voice for things, or simply bringing awareness to it, is sometimes the only thing we can do. I agree! We aren't always called to DO something. But be mindful and self aware. Don't be so caught up in all the things you can have a voice in, that you miss the things that God is calling you to be His hands and feet in. Seek Him. Be His voice AND His hands and feet.
We are actually failing in many ways to be the hands and feet of Christ. Some of this is because of our own personal failures and sin, but some is due to the culture we live in. I already mentioned the issue of being distracted by the ability to be a voice with no action, but there's another issue as well. Instant gratification. Our culture is a culture based on instant gratification of oneself, and it eats away at our days and sucks the energy and passion from us to do the things we are called to do. We can do things like instantly watch television on Netflix, or instantly download music from things like iTunes, Spotify, and Apple Music. With the internet we are simply one click away from knowing anything we want. These sound like silly examples to use, but we really do these things! These are the things that feed our minds and lives with the constant needs and demands to fill our time with what serves us in that very moment. Our whole day is a schedule filled with all the things that instantly serve us. Our culture is so preoccupied with satisfying ourselves right this instant that we often put off the things that may require more action on our end.. or the things that require us to sit and stop for a moment reflecting and praying about where God wants us to go next. We are too busy. Many would say that they live in a constant state of business. Our culture does not know how to have time to be the actual hands and feet of God. Our culture knows business, convenience, and instant gratification. If you are feeling convicted while reading this, please know that you are not alone. This is me too! For me even as a mom, I am constantly filling my mind and time with the things regarding the instant needs and demands of my family - emotionally and physically. I forget sometimes that I have many passions, spiritual gifts, and callings in my life beyond motherhood and my typical everyday commitments. This is not me (nor am I saying it is you) all of the time! Sometimes I am actively serving and loving others, and sometimes I am lazy on my couch actually thinking my blog, fb status, or Instagram post is going to be enough to change the world. Haha...
You may be wondering where this is all coming from! Well, last night I was in bed praying and asking God to continue giving me a heart and vision for the things HE wants me to do. Then I heard very clearly God say to me "be my hands and feet." Please don't misunderstand me! I think God calls us to be a positive voice on His and others behalf EVERYDAY. Me writing this very blog is me having a voice!!!! One of our biggest calls as Christ followers is to TELL others about Him - But even within that is a call to action right? "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love for one another." There's a time and place for everything. A time to simply speak up, and a time to actively serve those around us. However, right now I see a world, a culture, and a day and age where through the media there is PLENTY of room and opportunities to be a voice... but the time and place to be the hands and feet of Christ is very often drowned out by business and the instant demands of our everyday lives.
So what do we do then? What is it for you? In what ways can YOU be the hands and feet for Christ? As you are reading this, does something specific come to mind? Personally, something specific was on my mind last night while praying - something I am seeking God in. His answer? "Go be my hands and feet." For me this wasn't just an answer to what was on my heart, but also the awakening of a new perspective. So my encouragement to myself and all who read this, is to be more aware and look for the ways we can all actively serve Christ. Lets be more than just a voice in a world that needs our hands and feet.
“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”
1 John 3:18
Tuesday, March 28, 2017
Friday, March 10, 2017
Poverty
Nate and I have been given the opportunity to go on a short term mission trip this summer to El Mirador, which is in the Dominican Republic. So recently we've started reading the book "When Helping Hurts". It's a required reading to prepare us for the trip mentally and spiritually. At the beginning of each chapter are questions to think about before reading that chapter. One of the questions has really stuck out to me and therefore caused me to write this blog post. The question was:
What is poverty? What seems like a question with an obvious short answer, actually was a question that made me think in depth about the seriousness of that topic. Here are my thoughts.....
When I think of the word poverty I think of it as meaning lacking in something. The obvious things I myself, and I'm sure all of us, think of when we hear that word is poverty in a physical sense. The actual definition of "poverty" if you look it up absolutely describes it from that perspective - describing a situation where people's need for food, clothing, and shelter are not being met. We live in a world where money really does define what you can or cannot have in a physical sense. So when I think of "the poor" or words like "poverty" it's obvious and accurate in many aspects to think of it in that way. However, I am well aware that to "be poor" means way more than lacking physical things or money. We are all lacking in some sort of way wether it be physically, emotionally, mentality, or spiritually. As someone who has been on a handful of short term mission trips and also has a passion for homeless people within my own community, I also recognize that sometimes poverty, which on the surface is an issue of lacking physically, is actually rooted from something much deeper.
I don't know why there are so many homeless people, or why places like Haiti or El Mirador are struggling so much. But I do know that despite being one of the richest counties in the entire world, even we live in a culture that tells us that we always need or should want more - a better job, a bigger house, a nicer car, more clothes, the newest phone and so on. Therefore, we are tricked and convinced into thinking that we too are always lacking. This effects how we view poverty. People who live not knowing what their next meal might be or live in lacking areas or conditions, are classified as "less fortunate than us". We set the standard, and that's where our perception of poverty comes from. However, when we realize that poverty as a whole is actually way deeper than we even know, only then can we effectively support and come along side those in need. The homeless person on the side of the road isn't just poor because he lacks money or a home. He also potentially lacks the support of family or friends, lacks education, or possibly is dealing with some sort of addiction. Of course that's a small scale compared to entire countries or villages that are severely impoverished. I have no answers for that. But what I do know, is that when we start to address the hearts of people and make an effort to understand why they or their entire community is living in poverty, we start to see people how Jesus saw people. We see poverty not just based on standard of living, but also as something layered with back stories, history, and different perspectives we may never even understand.
I am not an expert in any of this. In many ways it's overwhelming to me when I think of all these things. But when I look at my own life and realize my constant need for more greatly effects how I view others, I begin to understand that reality of poverty being about more than just what we see on the surface. When we start to address those issues, then we can make changes in not just the lives but the hearts of people all over.
So what is poverty? Well I guess I would agree that it's all the obvious answers of people living with less food, shelter, and resources. But it's also only part of their story. I don't know what it's like to live in poverty, but I know that people who do are definitely lacking in more than just a physical sense and I think that's important to recognize. I may not know what that means specifically, but I realize that's true. I guess in some ways I also don't feel like the question "what is poverty" is even the only question that is important here. WHY is there poverty? Maybe pondering on that can help us get to the root of what poverty even really is.
What is poverty? What seems like a question with an obvious short answer, actually was a question that made me think in depth about the seriousness of that topic. Here are my thoughts.....
When I think of the word poverty I think of it as meaning lacking in something. The obvious things I myself, and I'm sure all of us, think of when we hear that word is poverty in a physical sense. The actual definition of "poverty" if you look it up absolutely describes it from that perspective - describing a situation where people's need for food, clothing, and shelter are not being met. We live in a world where money really does define what you can or cannot have in a physical sense. So when I think of "the poor" or words like "poverty" it's obvious and accurate in many aspects to think of it in that way. However, I am well aware that to "be poor" means way more than lacking physical things or money. We are all lacking in some sort of way wether it be physically, emotionally, mentality, or spiritually. As someone who has been on a handful of short term mission trips and also has a passion for homeless people within my own community, I also recognize that sometimes poverty, which on the surface is an issue of lacking physically, is actually rooted from something much deeper.
I don't know why there are so many homeless people, or why places like Haiti or El Mirador are struggling so much. But I do know that despite being one of the richest counties in the entire world, even we live in a culture that tells us that we always need or should want more - a better job, a bigger house, a nicer car, more clothes, the newest phone and so on. Therefore, we are tricked and convinced into thinking that we too are always lacking. This effects how we view poverty. People who live not knowing what their next meal might be or live in lacking areas or conditions, are classified as "less fortunate than us". We set the standard, and that's where our perception of poverty comes from. However, when we realize that poverty as a whole is actually way deeper than we even know, only then can we effectively support and come along side those in need. The homeless person on the side of the road isn't just poor because he lacks money or a home. He also potentially lacks the support of family or friends, lacks education, or possibly is dealing with some sort of addiction. Of course that's a small scale compared to entire countries or villages that are severely impoverished. I have no answers for that. But what I do know, is that when we start to address the hearts of people and make an effort to understand why they or their entire community is living in poverty, we start to see people how Jesus saw people. We see poverty not just based on standard of living, but also as something layered with back stories, history, and different perspectives we may never even understand.
I am not an expert in any of this. In many ways it's overwhelming to me when I think of all these things. But when I look at my own life and realize my constant need for more greatly effects how I view others, I begin to understand that reality of poverty being about more than just what we see on the surface. When we start to address those issues, then we can make changes in not just the lives but the hearts of people all over.
So what is poverty? Well I guess I would agree that it's all the obvious answers of people living with less food, shelter, and resources. But it's also only part of their story. I don't know what it's like to live in poverty, but I know that people who do are definitely lacking in more than just a physical sense and I think that's important to recognize. I may not know what that means specifically, but I realize that's true. I guess in some ways I also don't feel like the question "what is poverty" is even the only question that is important here. WHY is there poverty? Maybe pondering on that can help us get to the root of what poverty even really is.
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