What Do You Do When You're The Weakest Person in the Room?
I recently watched a video excerpt featuring Andy Stanley answering the question, "What do you do when you are the most powerful person in the room?" I was intrigued by the question enough to come up with my own answer, and then see if it matched his. Maybe you want to see the excerpt for yourself. You can find it here.
Anyway, in light of the recent catastrophes in our world—the cyclone in Myanmar, the earthquake in China, the numerous tornadoes in our own country—and the ongoing worldwide challenges of poverty, disease, genocide, and more, I reworded the question to consider a different perspective: What do you do when you’re the weakest person in the room? What do you do when you suddenly find the life you knew ripped from you—everything gone? Or what do you do when all you have known is subsistence, sickness, and oppression?
The answer is that you look for help and hope wherever you can!
Though some parts of the world suffer much more immediate hardship than others, need does not respect races, beliefs, borders, positions, or peoples. At any moment, hundreds of millions of souls are looking—searching for someone “in the room” who might just look back.
Compassion and relief presents one of the greatest opportunities to spread the Gospel around the world as well as around the block. Meeting needs in the name of Christ validates our Good News message and keeps us from becoming too self-absorbed (we do need to take a close look at how much time, energy, and money we can spend on coddling the flock versus going after the lost sheep). Consider the following Scriptures:
Matthew 25:40 (NIV)
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'”
Luke 10:36-37 (NIV)
"Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?" The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him." Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."
Acts 20:35 (NIV)
"In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"
Romans 15:1 (NIV)
We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.
James 1:27 (NIV)
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
This month’s Momentum focuses on compassion and relief ministry. I hope that you find the articles and resources helpful. I want to leave you with three thoughts:
1) Stay aware. Keep seeing this ministry as a global effort, but don’t look so far that you miss the opportunities in your own community.
2) Be creative. With the help of the Holy Spirit, Christians should be the most dynamic givers of help and hope in the world!
3) Remain fearless. Faith will lead you toward attempting what you know could never be done.
Have a great start to your summer!
Eric Schroeter