“Did you see how hard that guy punted that white, round thing across the court?”

-Things I say while watching soccer.

When it comes to soccer, I know next to nothing. Clearly. But I did get to watch on Tuesday as the USA lost to Belgium in what the news is calling a “heartbreaking loss.” I suppose to the soccer aficionado it was pretty disappointing, but personally, I walked away from that game grateful for a chance to stretch my legs and went about my day. The loss didn’t change anything for me.

For the last couple of weeks, I’ve been reading the news to keep up to date on all things soccer, so as to avoid being “that girl” when it comes to sports related conversations. Coincidentally, I’ve stumbled upon several non-sports related articles as well, and I can’t seem to stop reading them. I just want to take a moment and share with you just a few of the things I’ve read recently:

• Two weeks ago, 48 people were killed in a massacre in Kenya, as Somali extremists shot anyone that wasn’t Muslim or didn’t speak fluent Somali.
• Nearly 1 BILLION people do not have access to clean water, and 37% of those people live in Africa. Woman walk miles a day to reach a source of water where they wait their turn in line, hoping there will be enough for everyone. Should they be so lucky as to get water that day, they then make the journey back home, carrying the water on their backs and shoulders. Keep in mind, this isn’t even clean water. 1 in 5 deaths are due to water related diseases.
• Each year in Nepal, thousands of girls as young as 7 years old are kidnapped or even sold by their own families into a life of prostitution. They are taken to India, where they are caged, unfed and raped by dozens of men in a single day. Most of these women have multiple babies that are sent back to Nepal as soon as they are born because the courts do not allow the mothers access to their children.
• Planned parenthood recently issued an AWARD to a Colorado clinic for “exceeding the abortion quota.”

And then there’s me. I sit here tapping on keys behind a computer screen, free to proclaim and worship the name of Jesus; free to share the thoughts of my heart with you guys. Tonight I’ll sleep peacefully in my own bed, alone for that matter, without a doubt in my mind that I am safe and loved. There’s a water bottle on my desk at work, in my car and on my side table. There are 15 sources of running water in my home alone and I’m never more than 15 feet away from one of those sources. I am privileged. If you are reading this, you are privileged.

When I read things like this, I want to cry and scream and yell and CHANGE THINGS. As Christians, we are called to be defenders. We should long to see justice and deliverance. We should rise up and make some noise and FIGHT against these evils in this world.

Christians, friends, can I tell you what I see? I see a lot of fighting, and it’s going on right here within the church.

I don’t mean just the physical building where we worship. I’m talking about the church; the people that make up an assembly of believers. It’s you. It’s me. It’s us. We fight with one another. We fight to be right. We want the last word; we want to win. We sit with our arms crossed in a spirit of unforgiveness towards one another and call it “fair.” We allow words to wedge their way in between valuable relationships. We blame our past, our parents, or others for our present trials. We gossip, we exclude, and we use hurtful words intentionally. We call names; we hold grudges. We argue our opinions and parenting styles and we argue over whether or not the film “Noah” is biblically accurate enough to deserve two hours of our time in a theater. I get so used to seeing and being a part of this kind of disagreement so much so that it seems normal to me, until I read things like I’ve read recently. When I read those things, I come to the conclusion that sadly, in a world that reeks of sin and cruelty and filthy injustice, we are – far too often – silent. And in the times when we aren’t silent, we are fighting all the wrong battles.

This should not be so! I say this because my heart is so convicted about it. Look around – your family, your friends, your classmates and co-workers – they are not your enemies. They are your brothers and sisters in Christ! Sure, there will be arguments and issues, but I am tired of seeing words, disagreements and problems result in the dissolution of marriages and friendships. Enough! Not in a world that we are called to look different than and remain unstained by. Not in a place where being pro-choice is the societal norm and babies are being killed as we stand by and applaud and call it an achievement. If there is anything in the news that is worth being called a “heartbreaking loss,” it’s this. 1 John 4 talks about love, and how in light of God’s love for us, we are to love others, and by this love the world will know that we belong to Jesus. This sounds fairly simple, this duty to love others, and it is – until sin gets in the way, and it always does. Doing life alongside other fault-filled sinners is messy, but sin shouldn’t cause us to turn our backs on each other. If anything, sin gives us all common ground and makes us all a lot more like one another than we may think. As Christians, knowing the grace of Jesus should change things for us. It should change the way we love, the way we forgive. It should change perspective and priorities, but often it doesn’t. I’ve had to ask myself a lot lately if the way I’m living and loving is a reflection of worldly standards or a reflection of His grace.

I titled this post “what’s impacting my heart this week,” but I don’t want it to only be this week. I want it to be every week, every day, that I’m on my face begging God for His mercy to overwhelm this place. I don’t want to walk away from these stories like I did that soccer game yesterday and remain unchanged. I want the words that I’ve read in these past couple of weeks to saturate my heart; I want them to change me. I think it’s time, brothers and sisters, to put aside the things that stand in the way of us fighting for things that actually matter.

How can we do that? Here are some ways that we can start:

GIVE.

Support a missionary. Sponsor a child. For less than a dollar a day, you can change a child’s life. Compassion International and World Vision are two awesome organizations to get plugged in to if you aren’t sure where to start.

GO.

Take a short term mission trip. I promise you, it will change your life. I will be taking one this year! Contact me if you’re interested in joining me!

SERVE.

Volunteer at a homeless shelter. Feed someone in need. Do random acts of kindness throughout the week. Volunteer at your church. There are hundreds of needs to be filled inside and outside of the church – seek them out!

PRAY.

This is one we can all do! Pray for the families that have been affected by shootings, for the men and women risking their lives for our freedom. Pray for unborn babies and the hearts of their mothers. Pray for the dear, sweet children being forced into slavery and prostitution all across the world. And don’t just pray for those on the other side of the world. Pray for your city, your neighbors and your family. Pray for your own heart – for a spirit of forgiveness towards anyone that you may be withholding it from, for a boldness that defends the weak. And pray that God would move in this nation and that He would come quickly to restore all that’s been broken.

And in the meantime, let us be a praying church. Let us be a UNIFIED church. May we set the tone and send the message to the watching world that conflict will not separate the bride of Christ. May we forgive quickly and extend grace freely, and be a body that represents His love well, even when it’s counter-cultural and often times counter-intuitive.

In a world full of bad news, let’s share the Good News.

I truly believe that it’s not too late.

Let’s start today.