Acts 11:27-30

Acts 11:27-30
English Standard Version (ESV)

  Did you know there's a famine going on right now?  In parts of East Africa, there's a massive famine that is endangering the lives of thousands.  There's so much else going on in our lives, we may not have even noticed, and even if we do, there's a feeling of helplessness, right?  What are we supposed to do about a famine in East Africa?  I think it partly tests our theology of prayer -- do we think our prayers really matter?  I was at a monastery once and heard a monk describe their responsibility as being in prayer for the world.  At that moment I realized that they don't view their lives as withdrawn, but rather as engaged with the entire world through prayer.  It's a deep theology of prayer that trusts in God to hear our prayers, and that our prayers matter.
  So the famine in East Africa should matter to us.  (If you want to learn more about it, click here:  https://www.worldvision.org/hunger-news-stories/matthew-25-pray-hunger)  The neighbor's strife should matter to us.   The plight of the homeless should matter to us.  The struggles of our family members and friends matters, just as our own struggles matter.
  When we care, when we really care, we set aside resources -- whether it is time or energy or attention or money -- and we reach out, personally or in prayer or through mission agencies, to let the love of God bind us together.