The following post is taken from a family blog (http://bethhaut.blogspot.org). It think it deserves some consideration.
Somebody said something to me yesterday, and it has troubled me ever since. Last week I emailed our church congregation about a need for people to help watch children so that foster parents could acquire the required training hours to maintain their foster care licenses. I asked for a few people to volunteer just 2 hours a month (and not every month). One response. I got just one response from a congregation of 200 families.
Now, I realize that people are busy. I am busy. I realize people may not have read the email... often times I don't read email from the church. But what bothered me was the comment. I was told, "Well, that means people aren't called to do that kind of work."
I wanted to debate the comment, but the topic got changed and I didn't feel it was worth disputing at that point. But here I sit, still steaming. (Not at the person who made the comment, but by the state of the Christian church). I know most of you are thinking, "Oh, no, here she goes again." And if you want to put your head in the sand and stop reading, that is totally fine.
The simple fact is CHRISTIANS ARE CALLED to care for THE FATHERLESS and WIDOWS.
James 1:27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress.
It bothers me that godly people can so easily say, "I'm not called to that." It is essentially a quick fix to get out of something and sound holy at the same time. I am not saying everyone I ask should volunteer to help with some minimal childcare so that orphans in our community can be cared for... but I am saying that the statement of "I'm not called" doesn't give you some sort of doctor's note to present to God when he asks what you did for the orphans in His name.
How many people say, "I'm not called," without actually asking God if they are called? It is so often a knee jerk reaction to get out of something that is hard, or not even hard so much as an inconvenience. It's not that challenging to help watch children for two hours, but it may throw a wrench in ones TV watching that evening, or it may mean they have to spend a little extra time driving across town and back.
If people are not called to help, does that mean God is leaving the orphans in our community to fend for themselves? The one who calls Himself "The Father of the Fatherless?" Yes, maybe God forgot to call His church to help... or, not.
Isaiah 1:17 Learn to do good; seek justice, reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, plead for the widow.
Now, I realize that people are busy. I am busy. I realize people may not have read the email... often times I don't read email from the church. But what bothered me was the comment. I was told, "Well, that means people aren't called to do that kind of work."
I wanted to debate the comment, but the topic got changed and I didn't feel it was worth disputing at that point. But here I sit, still steaming. (Not at the person who made the comment, but by the state of the Christian church). I know most of you are thinking, "Oh, no, here she goes again." And if you want to put your head in the sand and stop reading, that is totally fine.
The simple fact is CHRISTIANS ARE CALLED to care for THE FATHERLESS and WIDOWS.
James 1:27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress.
It bothers me that godly people can so easily say, "I'm not called to that." It is essentially a quick fix to get out of something and sound holy at the same time. I am not saying everyone I ask should volunteer to help with some minimal childcare so that orphans in our community can be cared for... but I am saying that the statement of "I'm not called" doesn't give you some sort of doctor's note to present to God when he asks what you did for the orphans in His name.
How many people say, "I'm not called," without actually asking God if they are called? It is so often a knee jerk reaction to get out of something that is hard, or not even hard so much as an inconvenience. It's not that challenging to help watch children for two hours, but it may throw a wrench in ones TV watching that evening, or it may mean they have to spend a little extra time driving across town and back.
If people are not called to help, does that mean God is leaving the orphans in our community to fend for themselves? The one who calls Himself "The Father of the Fatherless?" Yes, maybe God forgot to call His church to help... or, not.
Isaiah 1:17 Learn to do good; seek justice, reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, plead for the widow.
1 comment:
Great post! Are we "called" to pick up a blown plastic bag in the church parking lot or wipe out a sink in the bathroom? -I've never felt "called" to but I've done those things :-). We adopted a son in 2006 and are now going full time on the mission field to work in orphan care in Ethiopia-we know not everyone is "called" to the extent that we have been but sitting back and doing nothing (at the least encouraging and praying for those foster families, adoptive families, and ministers and missionaries doing this work) just seems like such a cop out to me. So rant away I'm right there with you :-).
God Bless! Lynda www.tominethiopia.com
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