Why Don’t We Do Something?

Stories like this one from Time Magazine trouble me.

Not just because someone committed suicide over the actions of others,
but because no one seems to do anything about it.

Instead, we choose to picket abortion clinics and boycott Disney.

I wonder….

What would have happened had this child realized his value in Christ?
What would have happened had a Christian friend at his school stood up for Him?
What would have happened had someone loved the bullies enough to tackle their issue head on?

Situations like this make me wonder….

What difference are we really making in the world?
If the church is called to be the light, why do we often hide from the darkness?
Why do we so often do absolutely nothing relevant to these situations?
Are we really teaching people to live out their faith in their world?

Just some questions….

Your thoughts??


Comments

15 responses to “Why Don’t We Do Something?”

  1. A great set of questions Jon. I wonder often what if anything I do can help.
    I need to rely on God that he will watch over all as we cannot. It’s a battle that we can’t win, only help bring to the forefront of society.

    Great stuff man.

    1. Thanks man! It may seem elementary, but the greatest asset we have is love. To me, that’s what’s not being shown…

  2. That article just broke my heart. If he had been shown love then possibly…

    What breaks my heart even more is that in school I was probably the guy picking on him. It makes me sick to my stomach to see the pain that people go through.

    Thank you for sharing.

    1. With ya bro. We have to love the meek and the strong in these situations.

  3. I think this article should cause us all to look at our own hearts.

    My short answer for why the church does nothing: I think we are allowing ourselves to be driven by a public agenda set by people other than Christ. I know I personally need to step out of my confort zone even if it means going against what I have been publically told is the church’s stance.

    1. ewww… yeah. Very true. Thanks for your input, Dennis!

  4. Sad, but true. We keep our “Gospel” inside the four walls and eventually everyone begins to say “What’s that smell?”

    “That smell” is a gift that could have made a difference for a hurting world, but now it’s just rotten and not good for much of anything.

    Good words, Jonathan. Keep telling the truth!!!

    1. “what’s that smell” Love it!

  5. Great, great post, Jon. So timely.

    [Tearing up as I write this] I’m a Christian professor at a large, secular university….I can’t even begin to describe the anguish and hurt our young adults and teens experience today. I’ve had a college student call me at 3:00 in the morning, saying “I have a shotgun aimed at my mouth right now–tell me why I shouldn’t pull the trigger.”

    Sadly, this article speaks to the reality of our youths’ every day lives. I can’t even begin to describe the issues I see kids deal with today.

    And where is the Church? Probably at a leadership conference, the new party on the block.

    I think that too many churches today are into numbers–not people. People we are called to love.

    Kelly

    1. Wow! So touching and hurtful to hear. Thanks for sharing, Kelly!

  6. I think it’s a lot easier to look back at these incidents as adults and ask these questions. I had friends when I was growing up, I had parents who cared, but my friends didn’t stick up for me and I begged my parents not to get involved. So, the bullying continued for 2 or 3 years. It wasn’t fun, it wasn’t pleasant, and I had to throw a punch once to defend myself. But the words didn’t get easier to hear nor did the small physical confrontations in the halls and stairs stop. I think they finally got tired of using me as their plaything. I don’t know why it stopped. My mom, bless her heart, did get involved once or twice.

    I can only tell you that I was furious when my son was picked on in school. It brought back all those memories. I called the principal and didn’t care what my son wanted, but because it was the last day of school before a 2 week Christmas vacation, I’m sure my concerns were brushed under the rug at the Christian school we paid to teach my child.

    I think when parents stop feeling like they’re better than whatever group of people and they stop teaching their kids that they are better than other people, the bullying will stop. Louis VanAmstel of Dancing With The Stars fame said that if we stopped labeling people, then the bullying would stop. I finally realized that God loves everyone. He loves the gay and straight, the pastor and the pornographer, the housewife and the hooker. We ALL are sinners. We ALL share that label. God is no respecter of position in this world. We ALL need to get over ourselves and grow up and start loving our neighbors. Because we all all neighbors in this world.

  7. “I think when parents stop feeling like they’re better than whatever group of people and they stop teaching their kids that they are better than other people, the bullying will stop.”

    Excellent points, Sandy! Thanks for your transparency and for shedding more light on the real issue at hand!

  8. Darrell Childress Avatar
    Darrell Childress

    Absolutely great and poignant post bro, one of the best messages for Christians. We’re supposed to be the light that shines in this dark world, represent and live the hope our Savior gave us. That hope and love is for everyone, we need to share it more. How we “treat the least of these” is one of the ways we’ll be judged.

    It pains me at times to see how we treat each other because of our differences, instead of finding that common ground…our Creator!

    Don’t stop doing what you’re doing, God is using you…and I thank Him for that…and Twitter :-)

    1. Thanks man! Love following your tweets too!!

  9. […] My online friend, Jonathan Pearson, wrote the blog post Why Don’t We Do Something? based on this Time Magazine article The Bullying of Seth Walsh: Requiem for a Small-Town Boy.  […]

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