In my Introduction to Social Work Class, fall semester of my Sophomore year of college, I learned that as a social worker, the best empowering tool I can have and give someone is The Strength's Perspective. This perspective looks at the inherent strengths of a person or family, and then builds on those strengths, reframing any negative thought about a person, and finding good in them, even in the worst situation. It has stuck with me ever since, and it made the most impact in my education at GSU.
So, what if we looked at each and every person around us from this perspective? I think the main thing that holds people back from really making a difference, in their own backyard and to the ends of the world, is because of an identity crisis on 2 different levels.
1) Not putting your faith, trust, and belief in Jesus Christ….Do you really believe you are saved by Him? If you are, you would know 100%---(Jesus is the ONLY way, truth, and life.--John 14:6-7….also read John 3:1-21, Romans 10:9, Romans 6:23)
2) Insecurity and a feeling of uselessness. (Charles Dickens once said, "No one is useless in the world who lightens the burden of it for anyone else). Our identity should come from Christ. The living word of God tells us over and over again that if we are a child of God, we were created to do awesome amazing things, because the one in us is greater than this world filled with hate, injustice, and death….John 16:33, also read John 10:10, Ephesians 2:10, Ephesians 3:20, and Jeremiah 29:11)
This past Saturday, I had the privilege of seeing one of the best bands our history has ever known. U2!!!!!!!!!! And we got to go see them Nashville! How cool is that?! It was a Christmas gift from Daniel, and we made a little one day/night trip out of it. So, we weren't on the first row or anything…actually we were in the nose bleed section, but it didn't matter! Ok, so I had heard a little of U2's story before, and Bono's faith journey, and their passion for several different social justice movements, especially aids. But as we walked on the Vanderbilt campus and made our way into the stadium, little did I know that I was about to partake in a time of worship with my Lord. Call me crazy, but there is power in that music because of the meaning behind some of the songs. Put that with a man doing his part to not only make people aware of a dying world around them, but he is acting on it. Since we've been back, I've been more and more intrigued by what I've read and seen about how they have used what they have: their obvious, God-given talents and abilities to change the world, and make Jesus' name famous, and encourage the church to be dangerous and powerful, like it was intended to be. You may be thinking I'm crazy, but I ask you to read about it for yourself and match it up to God's word. This video is kinda cool (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dingVac1W1g), but if you have time, I hope their story will encourage you like it has done to me if you have time to read about it. I know 100% where I stand with Jesus, and I know I'm definitely an imperfect…and it's been obvious over the last 30 or so years that Bono and the band aren't saints either. I'm sure they've done some messed up stuff! But so have I. I know they'll be judged, by God alone, just like you and me, but I know there will also be thousands, if not millions of people in heaven that will greet them and say "thanks for giving me hope, and for clothing me, and feeding me. Thanks for showing me faith by what you do..by loving me." But what will be said of you and me?
The only reason I even bring up the band U2 is for 2 reasons: to brag about me getting to see them live, but more importantly, to show how these guys, with an emphasis on the lead singer, have taken what they are good at, made music(powerful music with a purposeful message behind so many of the songs, that makes people think and know that life is about something far greater than ourselves…),they spread a message, and ACTED!… BONO CHALLENGES THE CHURCH TO BE ALL JESUS INTENDED FOR IT TO BE…and help people, one at a time, using our unique, God-given gifts. They've made millions and millions and given a lot of it away to help those in need. They've shown that it's not about what you have, it's about what you do with what you have. Bono is quoted for saying, "As a rock star, I have two instincts, I want to have fun, and I want to change the world. I have a chance to do both." He uses what he is good at to make a difference in the world, which may or may not be the same gifts you have.
So what are you good at? If you don't know, pray for God to show you. Pray to be burdened…and pray for boldness. Also, we should be encouraging one another and building each other up, letting God speak through us to help others see what they can contribute(1 Thessalonians 5:11 and Ephesians 4:29).Everyone needs to know that they have something to contribute. Also, as Christians, we are called to be "followers" of Christ. We read the bible and we're amazed, and then we look at the world around us, and it doesn't really look the same. It's easy to fall into the trap of feeling like there are so many injustices and problems and causes in the world that need attention, and it seems hopeless, so we just conform to it. I think that is my problem. I get so sucked into the beautiful picture of the gospel, and the life of Jesus, and cool people like Nehemiah and Moses and Joshua, and Paul…and on and on….and obviously, the abundant LOVE of God is all over that. I look at a life like Jesus Christ, a perfect life…And I look at other people today who have done crazy, radical things, or started some cool program, organization, or foundation to help people, and I think that I could never do that. But I'm starting to see that this is the wrong mentality. What are we doing with what we are taught in the word and in church? And with what we sing about in church? Why can't it just start with trying to make one person's life better? Instead of trying to think of ways to save the world (I used to do this, and I would jump from one cause to another, burdened by everything…sex trafficking, aids, hunger, clean water, homelessness, abortion, etc). It would almost overwhelm me, and then I would just give up and accept it because I would view it as hopeless.
But my perspective is changing more and more as I learn more about Jesus and am challenged by what He demands from the church. Instead of listening to the voices of doubt, I need to remember that I can't do everything, but I can do something…and so can you!! Daniel and I have been consistently burdened by hunger around the world and in our own backyard. I cannot fathom why I get to have good food, a roof over my head, warm showers, clean water, etc while most of the world doesn't.Anyways, that's a whole new blog for a different day. But God has burdened us with this to the point that it's making me actually sacrifice some things and make decisions based on it. We're praying to not be ignorant about this. We're expecting more opportunities, and we're starting to act more. Praise God. We know that we aren't the best with communicating the beautiful message of the gospel, and you may feel that way too, but God shines through all of that when we are willing to go out of our way for Him. So..there are hundreds of homeless people in our county, there are thousands of kids wanting to be sponsored through compassion, world vision, or other programs I don't even know about, there are millions of of people begging to sponsor a well that will bring them clean water, millions of kids burdened by aids, millions of people who need shoes or life saving sugeries, or people who are begging for someone to help them have education, or millions of innocent people who are taken advantage of and forced to do the unthinkable, or the almost half of pregnancies that end in abortion…you catch my drift?
Ephesians 5:1-2 says we are to follow Jesus' example,and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us. We need to be sacrificing ourselves for our brothers and our sisters around the world… Jesus loved me even when I was useless to Him. He made a way and set an example for us to follow. The church is a dangerous weapon against the devil, but if we're not careful, it will be easy to prevent the church from shining like it is intended to….by being imitators of Jesus Christ--His hands and feet to a broken world. The only way we can do this though is if each and every one of us would BEG God to burden our heart with a cause. According to Ephesians 2, we were saved by grace through faith, which wasn't our own doing. It was so we could do wonderful things for God, because we are His MASTERPIECE! (verse 9).
So what burdens you? How can you help just one person even, and make Jesus and His CHURCH's name famous for doing wonderful things, instead of being so inwardly focused? The cool thing is, when you find out what you're good at, and when you use the "strength's perspective" to look for the best in yourself and others, giving hope to one person will turn into giving hope to much more. Let's look for ways to help as we find what we're passionate about. Let's look for the best in each other, as believers, instead of tearing one another down. Then the church will be unstoppable.
*1 John 3:16: "We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters."
*James 2:5-18: "Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him? But you dishonor the poor! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear?Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God’s laws. For the same God who said, “You must not commit adultery,” also said, “You must not murder.” So if you murder someone but do not commit adultery, you have still broken the law. So whatever you say or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law that sets you free. There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when he judges you.What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
