How Much Is Too Much?

Because of physical health issues I'm exhausted. Because I'm exhausted I've been feeling overwhelmed by the problems of the world. Too many people need counselling. Too many people need food and safety. Too many people are slaves (current estimate 27 million).

I'm staggered by the amount of sin that we simply ignore.

We just let people be used and abused. It's easier that way. Or so we think. Raw human brokenness is on display daily, crying out for someone to help, and at best we who have so much toss them a biscuit or a couple coins. 

But then I think – Am I even asked to fix it all? 

Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will love one another. Your love for others will be the measure of whether I am a living presence in your life. My indwelling presence in your life will guide your desires to match My desire to help the poor and needy. It's not that helping the poor will save you. It's that helping those whose lives are broken is evidence that I reside within your soul. If I am truly your friend, you will see Me, waiting to be loved, within every person you meet who is in need.”

As a Christian, as a follower of Jesus, what I'm asked to do is meet the need that's in front of me. I'm asked to heal the person that God brings to my attention. I'm asked, at minimum to love the one who crosses my path either in person or online. The world is a mass of suffering and Jesus has shown us what is expected of us.

He never apologizes for the suffering. It's not His fault. We are the ones who invited this mess to take place. Neither however does He look the other way. Jesus steps into the middle of our messy lives. He asks us to grab hold of His hand and spend time in the hard places; to not seek safety and comfort but to give comfort and mercy and love.