GO!
This morning, I sent money to two different sources to do my seemingly insignificant part again in response to humanitarian crises. While Ukraine and Ukrainians are uppermost in my mind these days, it’s impossible to relegate my feelings about the worldwide refugee situation to a lower status.
As followers of Jesus, we know about real love, compassion and mercy. Our hearts have been enlarged to make room for displaced and suffering people. The Bible is clear about how we are to treat strangers/foreigners.
I’m not recommending where or how others should help. I’m merely praying for those in my tiny sphere of influence: May our hearts be enlarged… may our empathy be cleansed of self-protective-ness. May tears of compassion drive us to meaningful action. Yes… even our praying and giving money speak for us.
Again… I’m not promoting any particular channel for our giving. But here are two sources of information that help me to keep a tender heart… and make crying and praying more of a lifestyle thing.
From Doctors Without Borders
From Rescue.org
From a purely Christian point of view, benevolence and crisis management are not the whole story. We all need Jesus. There’s more at stake than food and shelter. Saving a life is a short-lived victory if the soul remains unhealed.
GO for us means carrying the good news of salvation and eternal life wherever we go. Jesus commanded us to go. Even if he hadn’t, it still shouldn’t be hard to feel the suffering and hear the pleas for help.
Ukrainian men head home into the crossfire to defend their homeland. When the Twin Towers were attacked, firefighters climbed toward the blazes… they died trying to save others. When a mass shooting breaks out, our police officers run toward the gunshots. The list is long…
So what’s our Christian response to a crisis? Has Jesus crossed the hard, dangerous places off his list? The world needs us. I’m praying you or someone close to you will feel drawn—compelled—to march into the crossfire to rescue a soul that needs saving.
For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, “I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 13:47, ESV)
Yes my heart needs to remain soft. I happened upon a panel discussion and an apology last week by a well known feisty current affairs commentator . He began with loudly admitting he needed to repent. On a day when Russian military had bombed a hospital in Ukraine, he admitted …[my paraphrase]’ ‘when covering the violence in Syria, I knew many hospitals there had been mercilessly bombed or shelled, but it never touched my heart/my gut in the way todays intentional attack does. What was wrong with my empathy that I did not see the humanity and pain of the Syrian people as I now feel for the Ukrainian civilians?’
I pray that my spiritual senses are on high alert 24/7 to know what the Spirit is saying. May His will be my passion. Let's GO!!! (P.S. I've also been praying for Doors of Hope International. https://www.dohi.org/please-help-the-people-of-ukraine/)