On My Mind - Social Justice, Bono, and the Church

"The righteous is concerned for the rights of the poor; the wicked does not understand such concern." - Proverbs 29:7

This concern that Proverbs speaks of is often on my mind, but I find myself questioning whether my concern is resulting in enough action. The message I keep getting from the Holy Spirit is that I can't treat it like a checklist item- just because I'm doing something doesn't necessarily mean I'm doing enough. Anybody else doing self-assessment on this issue of caring for the poor?

I also can't help but notice that many churches in the U.S. seem to be spending a lot of time and money on their buildings and worship services. I don't claim to know for sure, but my guess is that a lot of these churches aren't even coming close to spending that same amount of resources and effort on helping people in need of basic necessities for life. Surely this wasn't the case with the early church.

"Recognizing the grace that had been given to me, James and Cephas and John... gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship...They only asked us to remember the poor-- the very thing I also was eager to do." - Galatians 2:9

I recently watched a video of U2 frontman Bono challenging the church to get more involved in fighting what he calls "stupid poverty." You'll have to watch this clip for yourself to find out what he means by that. I really appreciated his thoughts and his honesty and think his passion and insights might challenge you as well.

A few quotes that stuck with me.

"The world is more malleable than you think." - Believers have something that makes this especially true. We have access to the throne room of God, where the future of the world is ultimately shaped. We have the authority of Christ to break down strongholds that contribute to the cycles of poverty and death, and we have access to the endless resources of the Kingdom of God.

"We musn't describe this stuff as a burden, as a duty, it's really an opportunity and an adventure." - God loves a joyful giver, and the right heart attitude in regards to this issue makes a big difference in how much we're willing to invest ourselves in it.

"Stop asking God to bless what you're doing. Find out what God is doing, because it's already blessed." - If only we'd be more perceptive to this and be on the look out for what God is doing (and not just in regards to poverty ministry). I think we'd find ourselves doing a lot of things differently with our time here on earth.

For any of you worried that I'm embracing the social gospel, fear not, but I have a few thoughts on that issue in store for next time.