Well, once again, it's been a while since I've blogged. Practically the whole summer in fact. You see, the thing is, when I write, I like to have something worthwhile to say. I don't just want to write about random things that have happened to me, or interesting tidbits of trivia that will have absolutely no impact on the daily lives of my readers. When I write, I want to inspire. I want to create in my readers a desire to know God more fully and to grow in their faith. In truth, my heart echoes St. Paul's desire to "impart some spiritual gift" to make my readers strong in the Lord, so that together we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith.
Unfortunately, opportunities for inspiring are few and far between in my life at the moment. Right now, I am just beginning to solidify my own beliefs, and to truly understand what it is that I stand for. At times, God opens my eyes to see many wonders in His word. Sometimes they are things that could be shared and would mutually benefit my readers and myself, but at other times, they are more personal things, things that speak directly to my own soul and to my own path that God is calling me to follow. It would be foolish to expect that everyone would understand what I am going through and the significance of such things to me. As Aslan would say, "No one is told any story but their own." However, I have recently found, among the many Christian books I have been reading, a common thread, and one that is extremely important for all Christians, whatever their walk in life, to understand.
First of all, take a look at the life of Job, one of the most amazing and righteous men in the Bible. Before God allowed the Devil access into Job's life, Job was rich and powerful. He was a respected man, one whom others turned to for answers. But what exactly was the source of Job's popularity and success? Listen to his own words: "Whoever heard me spoke well of me, and those who saw me commended me, because I rescued the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to assist him. The man who was dying blessed me; I made the widow's heart sing. I put on righteousness as my clothing, justice was my robe and my turban. I was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame. I was a father to the needy; I took up the case of the stranger. I broke the fangs of the wicked and snatched the victims from their teeth." This was why Job was successful. This was why he was considered a righteous and upright man. Because he helped those who had no helper, and protected those who were without protection.
All over the world, there are people who are suffering, people who need help. In Africa, there is the boy-soldier, forced to fight and kill like a man in a senseless war at the tender age of nine or ten. In Haiti, there is the orphan who is starving in the streets in a land left destitute and ravaged by war in the wake of the white man's control. There is the child-prostitute, the persecuted brother or sister in the Lord, the slaves who are still being bought and sold 149 years after the Emancipation proclamation freed slaves here in America. And then, there is the homeless, the addict, the poor and destitute who live within your own city limits. And what are we doing about it? Some of us do research so we can be more "informed" about the "issue". Some of us hand a dollar to the guy at the corner just so that we can ease our conscience. A few of us do a little more. We visit our local homeless shelter or soup kitchen, and as soon as we get back we return to our self-centered, consumeristic American lifestyle. We can't do more, because we might miss our Friday night movie, or our weekly sitcom. We rush to the movie theater or the book store, expending all of the passion and energy we could be using for God's glory on the worthless pursuit of entertainment. We spend hours on Facebook or Twitter, keeping up with all the meaningless chatter and playing all the mindless games that we can find "just for the fun of it". Our society seems to be always searching for "fun". But where is the love, the compassion, the servanthood? In a world where all the largest churches have coffee shops and gift stores, we are sadly lacking the desire to help the poor and the outcast, the orphan and the widow.
I am just as guilty as anyone reading this. I waste countless hours of my time watching movies, reading novels, spending it all in the pursuit of having fun. I am just as self-centered as anyone else. But by the grace of God, I want to change! There is nothing wrong with entertainment in moderation. I am not saying that all movies, and music, and books are bad, or that Facebook is an abomination. Goodness knows I love and enjoy all of these things just as much as anyone else. But it is when they become the sole focus of our lives, when every leisure hour is spent in mindless entertainment, that we have a serious problem. It is when we don't want to remember the fatherless because we might feel guilty that the issue arises. It is when we are too concerned with self to care about any other person that we desparately need to change. And in our materialistic world, such a conviction can become a monumental struggle. As we attempt to slowly change the focus of our lives, we will be assailed on all sides by the Devil and his minions. Because he knows that once we give up self and deny it what it wants and craves, he is losing his hold over us. Are You willing to take the challenge? Will you fight along side me in the battle for those who have no one to fight for them? God has a special place in his heart for the widow and the orphan and the poor, and I want to have the same love for them that he has. And by his grace, this desire can become a reality. Jesus Christ has already died on the cross and delivered us from our sinful selves, but we have yet to take him up on his offer. He will transform us into his very nature, the nature of the one who sought out the poor, the sick, the lame, the blind, the orphan and the widow, if we will only allow Him to do so.
