Articles
FAMILIES: Resisting Satan’s Attacks (cont.)
APATHY
Maybe it is the result of our assimilated, busy and distracted lives, but apathy seems to be
a significant problem in Christian families today. It may also be the thought that someone else
will handle the problem that causes us to overlook the needs of others. Whatever the root, all
sorts of needs are around us, and we appear to have become so accustomed to seeing them that
we are not moved to get involved in helping.
A few months ago, my wife and four children and I were on vacation in Chattanooga
when my kids spotted a homeless person on the side of the road. It was raining, and the person
was standing there soaking wet holding a sign that expressed his need for food. I drove by him
without really even noticing. I’ve driven by hundreds of homeless people in my lifetime, but this
was one of my children’s first experiences with it. My heart was hardened to the need. Theirs
were still soft. Unfortunately, we did not help on that occasion, but since then we have
volunteered as a family to help feed and shelter families in need in our area.
I do not want my children or our congregation to grow apathetic regarding the needs of
those around us and the work of the church. My hope is to help every person in my family to find
their potential for ministering and to learn to “engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so
that they will not be unfruitful” (Titus 3:14). Plenty of things keep us all busy in the work of the
church. There is no time for apathy. ~Ben Hayes
A PERSONAL NOTE: As easy as it is to make this article be just about “church benevolence”, I
find it more important to focus on all the opportunities we have on a daily basis to serve others. It
is easy to blame the “church” for not taking care of the needs of others, but we need to be
reminded that we [Christians] are the church. If each of us would take a moment each day to find
a way to serve (opportunities surround us daily!), then we would indeed be recognized as a
“light” in this dark world. Service may be less about money for those in need and more about
selflessly giving of time. ~P. Mowrer
