It's a rough world out there.
We all know about pain and suffering. We live in it, basically all the time. It's on the news. It's in our communities. Sometimes it's in our homes and our personal lives. We all have to deal with the trials that come our way.
But does it have to end there?
Our society is all about embracing who you are and doing what you love, and a lot of people want to make a difference in this world for the better. Many start or work at businesses that are directly involved in changing communities. Some travel the world to help people in places where the desperate needs are more evident. And through their work, a lot of good people accomplish a lot of good work.
But to what end? With all of these goals of changing the world for the better, are we actually changing the world? We may have an impact in communities and change the lives of individuals, but are we truly playing a role in changing the global structure of our world and truly solving problems we're trying to tackle?
No, and yes.
I say no because realistically, you cannot affect everyone in this world and fix global problems on your own. But, I also say yes because starting somewhere, anywhere, is what kickstarts the true difference in the world. Helping one person can help them become a world-changer too, because then they can help one person, and so on. It's like the snowball effect: the more you keep the snowball rolling, the bigger it can become, and maybe eventually it can affect the whole world. Maybe it won't, but that's okay too. Even if you can't change the whole world, you can still help one person and change their world.
Realistically though, we will still always have problems. We're never going to truly solve world hunger, or racism, or whatever other issue you want to fight for and work to change in this world, but we can change the way we see these issues and the way our society responds to them. We can make a difference where we are, and sometimes, that's enough.
Sometimes it's hard to make a difference. Maybe the people who have the authority to make necessary changes won't listen. Maybe you fall short in terms of resources and can't help as many people as you were hoping. Maybe your plans all fall apart, whether that be moving to a specific place or starting your own business, which can be good goals that would have immense impact if they had worked out. It can be hard, but we have to learn from such situations and either find a new way of approaching or solving the issues we wish to address.
You also have to know when to pick your battles. Situations will arise that frustrate you and will make you want to somehow act and change the situation and make a difference, but it may not be your place to do so or may not be as important as you're making it out to be. I've seen that firsthand lately, where people are frustrated and want to act, but aren't approaching the issues they want to address in a way that will actually change things, or they're picking the wrong (and often more trivial) fights which is causing further division and growing issues.
When focusing on a big picture goal, you have to be willing to acknowledge that some of your frustrations aren't as important as others. A good example of this (in my opinion) is the church. If you go to church and start complaining about music or song choices, it can lead to division over a trivial matter (yep, I said it, that's trivial), but if you want to address issues of not showing love to people the way the church is called to, you can make a bigger, more long-standing impact if you keep fighting for what's right (right from a biblical perspective, not from your personal opinion and not from your opinion about the biblical perspective,) and that can change the world and bring more people to Christ.
This brings me to the real reason I wrote all of this: trying to fix all the world's problems is a hopeless battle, but trying to change the world for Christ is worth it.
You're not going to be able to find the perfect solution to a world issue and successfully implement it, because some people will disagree with your plan, regardless of how perfect it is, and you are not going to be able to completely eradicate the problem (especially for something as big as, like, world hunger, because I'm pretty sure they've tried that a few times already). However, if you make an impact where you are and are sharing the gospel and sharing Christ with those around you, you can have a bigger impact than you know. Jesus even said it in Matthew 6, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." This is to say, at least from my understanding, focus on changing the world for God. Don't get caught up in the trivial matters of this world and building up yourself and your wealth in this life, but keep your eyes fixed on the big picture of bringing people to Christ and living in a way that produces heavenly, not earthly, rewards.
And that, my friends, is how you change the world.
I guess it applies more to the future life we'll be living as opposed to this one, but the point still stands that it's important to focus on what matters. As we go into this world and try to change it, we shouldn't focus on the impact we're having on this world (which I would find kind of discouraging anyway if my goal was to change the whole world and all I did was help a few people) but on the impact we're having in the lives of those around us regardless of whether that impact is intentional or not.
We all know about pain and suffering. We live in it, basically all the time. It's on the news. It's in our communities. Sometimes it's in our homes and our personal lives. We all have to deal with the trials that come our way.
But does it have to end there?
Our society is all about embracing who you are and doing what you love, and a lot of people want to make a difference in this world for the better. Many start or work at businesses that are directly involved in changing communities. Some travel the world to help people in places where the desperate needs are more evident. And through their work, a lot of good people accomplish a lot of good work.
But to what end? With all of these goals of changing the world for the better, are we actually changing the world? We may have an impact in communities and change the lives of individuals, but are we truly playing a role in changing the global structure of our world and truly solving problems we're trying to tackle?
No, and yes.
I say no because realistically, you cannot affect everyone in this world and fix global problems on your own. But, I also say yes because starting somewhere, anywhere, is what kickstarts the true difference in the world. Helping one person can help them become a world-changer too, because then they can help one person, and so on. It's like the snowball effect: the more you keep the snowball rolling, the bigger it can become, and maybe eventually it can affect the whole world. Maybe it won't, but that's okay too. Even if you can't change the whole world, you can still help one person and change their world.
Realistically though, we will still always have problems. We're never going to truly solve world hunger, or racism, or whatever other issue you want to fight for and work to change in this world, but we can change the way we see these issues and the way our society responds to them. We can make a difference where we are, and sometimes, that's enough.
Sometimes it's hard to make a difference. Maybe the people who have the authority to make necessary changes won't listen. Maybe you fall short in terms of resources and can't help as many people as you were hoping. Maybe your plans all fall apart, whether that be moving to a specific place or starting your own business, which can be good goals that would have immense impact if they had worked out. It can be hard, but we have to learn from such situations and either find a new way of approaching or solving the issues we wish to address.
You also have to know when to pick your battles. Situations will arise that frustrate you and will make you want to somehow act and change the situation and make a difference, but it may not be your place to do so or may not be as important as you're making it out to be. I've seen that firsthand lately, where people are frustrated and want to act, but aren't approaching the issues they want to address in a way that will actually change things, or they're picking the wrong (and often more trivial) fights which is causing further division and growing issues.
When focusing on a big picture goal, you have to be willing to acknowledge that some of your frustrations aren't as important as others. A good example of this (in my opinion) is the church. If you go to church and start complaining about music or song choices, it can lead to division over a trivial matter (yep, I said it, that's trivial), but if you want to address issues of not showing love to people the way the church is called to, you can make a bigger, more long-standing impact if you keep fighting for what's right (right from a biblical perspective, not from your personal opinion and not from your opinion about the biblical perspective,) and that can change the world and bring more people to Christ.
This brings me to the real reason I wrote all of this: trying to fix all the world's problems is a hopeless battle, but trying to change the world for Christ is worth it.
You're not going to be able to find the perfect solution to a world issue and successfully implement it, because some people will disagree with your plan, regardless of how perfect it is, and you are not going to be able to completely eradicate the problem (especially for something as big as, like, world hunger, because I'm pretty sure they've tried that a few times already). However, if you make an impact where you are and are sharing the gospel and sharing Christ with those around you, you can have a bigger impact than you know. Jesus even said it in Matthew 6, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." This is to say, at least from my understanding, focus on changing the world for God. Don't get caught up in the trivial matters of this world and building up yourself and your wealth in this life, but keep your eyes fixed on the big picture of bringing people to Christ and living in a way that produces heavenly, not earthly, rewards.
And that, my friends, is how you change the world.
I guess it applies more to the future life we'll be living as opposed to this one, but the point still stands that it's important to focus on what matters. As we go into this world and try to change it, we shouldn't focus on the impact we're having on this world (which I would find kind of discouraging anyway if my goal was to change the whole world and all I did was help a few people) but on the impact we're having in the lives of those around us regardless of whether that impact is intentional or not.
Comments
Post a Comment