I 'm Only One by Carol Harrison

 

 

I’m Only One

  I watch the news and hear of pain, see the protests, and escalating conflicts. My heart hurts. I turn off the news and long to bury my head under the covers and pretend or hope it will go away, be resolved, or at least not touch any closer to home. But I know this brokenness exists. I realize people are hurting and need others to stand with them and for them. What can I do? I am only one.

I hear about social issues close to home, people in my community who need so much. Poverty, hungry children, those with mental illness, addictions, or disabilities live here. Their needs are often ignored. They are forgotten for no one wants to understand, offer a helping hand, a listening ear. The marginalized don't seem to have a voice. This breaks my heart. What can I do? I am only one.

Abuse happens even in homes we least likely expect it to. Pornography permeates places we never think it might. Women disappear. Human trafficking doesn’t just happen somewhere else. Fear and shame hover near. Anger and outrage erupts as abuse, disappearances, or extreme anguish and pain surface for others to see. Then my heart aches. What can I do? I am only one.

Racism rears its ugly head over and over; not just in other places but close to home. People need to be seen for who they are – wonderfully made by God, even though many don’t acknowledge that. The need for equality, fairness, and acceptance surround me. My heart cries. What can I do? I am only one.

Countless numbers need to hear the good news of the gospel; the news that God loves them and Jesus took their place on the cross. Some are waiting to hear for the first time. Some are waiting to see this good news shared through actions and attitudes, not words only. They’ve been hurt by too many in the name of Christianity, by those who do not live with the attitudes and actions God desires. Do I share my faith in tangible ways? Do I share it through my words, my actions, my attitudes? My heart sorrows for when I don’t. What can I do?

Too often I allow defeat to render me ineffective for I am only one against so many problems, trials, and injustices. Sometimes I still long to hide away and hope someone else sounds the alarm, walks alongside to help, or rallies others to make a difference. But that is not what God commands in Scripture. I am not only one. I am part of the body of Christ. I am part of humanity.

What can I do? There are many things for each one of us, including me, to do. First I must remain faithful to God's Word. Then I must allow God to help me live His truth everyday even when I don’t understand how to help others in this broken world around me.

Matthew 6: 14-16 says, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to every one in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

What can I do? I am only one. One little light in a dark and hurting world. Matthew 10: 42 says “And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.” A cup of water is one little thing. Actively listening to someone’s story and accepting them for who they are and where they are is one little thing. Giving funds or provisions to someone who desperately needs them is one little thing. I can do one small thing at a time, which will touch the life of one person, who in turn can touch someone else. A chain of small things can change the world.

My heart hurts for all the pain and suffering. It breaks for all those misunderstood, unloved, or abused. But what has God placed in my heart to write about, talk about, and take action on when opportunity knocks? Several things pull harder on my heart strings or at least more often. One is inclusion for those with disabilities. What does it really mean to include those who move and learn differently? I am only one but I can speak to this and write about it for I have lived it for years as an advocate for my daughter. What I write about is born from my desire to educate others and encourage them to know the person, see the ability within the disability, and how we all are created by God to be our unique selves.

There are times my heart is heavy, my emotions tear-filled, and darkness threatens to overtake me. Depression has been an issue in my life. As God brought people to walk alongside, counsel, and encourage me, so now my heart pulls me to help and encourage others.

Maybe I hang back because I don’t like conflict. Most hot button issues fan conflict, increase the pain, and make me want to hide instead of being God's light and help to others. My heart still hurts and my conscience pricks when I abdicate doing and not just reading God's commands in the Bible. What can I do? I am only one.

I can live life, with God’s help, as described in Colossians 3: 12–15. It also reminds me I am not alone but part of a group, the body of believers.

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you many have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.  

What can I do? I am only one, but I serve the God for whom nothing is impossible. I will be faithful to what he asks me to speak or write. I will walk with someone who is hurting instead of hiding under the covers. I am only one but God can use me in ways I can’t imagine, to make a difference for someone else.  Yes, I am only one but Jesus is THE ONLY ONE.

 

 

 Carol Harrison shares her stories of hope and God's faithfulness from her home in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Her desire is to walk humbly through whatever doors God opens to encourage others in their own journey's and tell them the stories of Jesus.

Wanted: Broken Hearts - Pamela Mytroen

by Pam Mytroen

Having resigned from my position as director of a children’s ministry in our church, I had the most uncomfortable task of opening my resume and taking a hard look at it.

Re-entering the work-force is about as comfortable as re-entering the atmosphere after being in another world for so long. I’m out of touch with reality, according to my credentials, and I just might burn and fizzle up to nothing as I realize the gravity of the situation.

I played with the variety of experiences I’ve had over the years. Let’s see, what should I put at the top of my resume? That I raised four children? No, the initials M.O.M. behind your name aren’t valued like they used to be. Scrap that. Sorry, kids.

How about my job as a night operator at the Canadian Pacific Railway? Hmmm. I used a telegraph and a computer the size of a refrigerator. The first thing the employer would do is take my pulse and ask if I’m carrying nitroglycerin. Scratch that off my resume too.

I did counsel at camp way back when. I have training in piano and voice – I could play you Amazing Grace in several different keys. Or I could teach a spellbinding flannelgraph story...

Should I list my Bachelor’s Degree in Biblical Studies? They might be afraid that I’d wonk them over the head with the family bible, or worse – that I might be ‘intolerant’. I highlight and delete that most wonderful time of my life, the foundation of who I am, and pretend it never existed.

Hmmmm, that leaves nothing on my list. Once I take away everything I did, that only leaves my character values. I’ve got “honest, responsible, and reliable.” Will they believe that with no initials behind my name, and no ‘experience’ to back it up?

Guess I’ll work as a waitress if they’ll let me. Or go back to school and get a ‘real’ bachelor’s degree. One that will get me a ‘real’ job.

It’s left me feeling rather deflated and worthless, like a balloon that squeals and takes off once the air is released. I’m a piece of colorful rubber that’s no good to anybody.

But there is One who values the inner life. One who takes the world’s idea of shriveled waste and sees far past its outer shell.

God says, “Tear your heart in half...and come back to me” (Joel 2:12, 13).

Well that shouldn’t be too difficult. I’m feeling somewhat broken already.

There was a time after the Hebrews conquered the land of Canaan when they fell away from the God they trusted. Once they were settled and began enjoying the olives and figs and the well-watered valleys they no longer needed to depend on God for courage to enter the land of the giants.

The Hebrews continued to practice their own religious rituals. They would sit in the dust and tear their clothes to show sorrow before God. But God saw their hearts and He knew that they were not sorry for their sins. In fact, they kept right on indulging in prostitution and idol-worship. The tearing of their robes was only a showy ritual.

So God invites them to rend, or tear, their hearts instead of their clothing. He valued their inner brokenness far more than their outer decorum.

We can do all kinds of valuable and good things, and have meaningful letters behind our name, but what God really wants is for us to ‘be’ somebody more than for us to ‘do’ something.

Whatever stream of education I enter, and whatever career I take up, what God longs to see is the laying down of my heart, more than the taking up of my hands.

My resume is in God’s hands – the best place it can be – and He is my ultimate employer. He puts a high price on what really matters.

My first day of classes will start soon. Now where did I leave my zippered briefcase and type-writer ribbon?