Do You See the Needs?

Today I opened my phone and saw a picture of the devastation in Guatemala from the volcano eruption of Volcan del Fuego. 27 miles from Guatemala City, it shot ash nearly four miles into the sky, causing nearly 300 people to evacuate. Ash landed all over the villages of San Pedro Yepocapa and Sangre de Cristo. As I write this, many are trapped by flowing lava. Rescues are in progress but hampered by mud roads. Numerous people are dead and many more are injured and missing.

Nearly every day we get reminders that there are plenty of urgent needs here in our country and around the world. As Christians, we are the ones God wants to use to meet those needs.

"Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives" (Titus 3:14). Paul wrote this to Titus who was staying on the island of Crete. Paul had left Titus there to oversee the Christians.

Do you see the needs and what can you do when you do see them?

I want to convince you that there is always something you can do to help, no matter how small your financial resources are or tight your time constraints are. If you need help knowing what to do, ask the Lord to open your eyes and ears to see the needs and to see how you can help.

This past weekend a small mission team from our church went to the heart of Philadelphia to help. The group went to an area known to be heavy with heroine addicts and the homeless. A barber from my hometown set up chairs and along with his staff gave haircuts to the homeless. Nonstop, for five plus hours.

Nearby a few others set up a grill and fed the homeless ones hot dogs before and after their haircuts. 500+ hot dogs were served until they ran out.

Others distributed Homeless Blessing Bags which had been assembled the day before the trip. I organized bag project. About six ladies came at a moment's notice to join in an assembly line system of loading the bags. Food and personal care items were placed in piles on a large table. We each took a bag and walked around the table filling it, and then placed a pink or blue note in the bag, indicating it was a bag of supplies for male or female.

We enjoyed hanging out together, "doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs..." as per Titus 3:14. Some were able to provide the finances for the project, others the time to pack and pray for the team taking them and the people who would receive them.

There's always some way one can help if the heart is willing and the eyes and ears are open to finding the needs.

"And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works..." (Hebrews 10:24) Therefore, I invite you to encourage us all to action by sharing in the comments field below some of the projects you and/or your church have participated in.