A Heart for a Hurting Humanity
I once heard the story of a man who had five children, one of whom was autistic. One day the man, his wife, and children went on a much-needed vacation. With them, were several other families. As they all stood fellowshipping in an outdoor shopping area, the autistic child wandered into the local coffee shop unnoticed. The rest of the group went into an ice cream shop next door. When the autistic child came out of the coffee shop, to his surprise everyone was gone. Panicking, he took off running in the opposite direction of the ice cream shop.
As everyone came out, the father noticed his son was missing. Retracing his steps, he went back into the shop. When he didn’t find his son, he went to the coffee shop only to be told his son had been there, but ran off in the opposite direction. Feeling sick to his stomach, the father, along with the rest of the group, scrambled to find his autistic child. After several hours, the father in his desperation approached a security officer to ask for help. The officer, appearing disinterested, suggested the father simply retrace his steps and wait for his son to return. Disappointed and frustrated, the father intensified his search. Several more hours passed and the father, tired and broken, walked toward a bridge where he saw his son standing on the opposite side. He could see his son was frantic, crying, and disoriented while anxiously looking in every direction. In that moment, the father called out to his son, the son recognized his father and ran in his direction collapsing in his open arms.
I’ve heard this story on many occasions and it always leaves me in tears. It is the truest depiction of mankind and God’s incredible love for humanity. Like the autistic son, man was lost and like the father, God found him through the death, burial, and resurrection of His son Jesus. I believe it’s important to note that although the father in the story had five children, he was consumed with finding the one. At no time did he come to the conclusion that he was okay because he still had four. On the contrary, finding the one became so important to him that he was willing to leave the others.
As Christians, we must understand just how vital it is that we accept the commission to go into all the world with the heart of God and the saving message of Jesus Christ, seeking the one. The one who is lost, the one who can’t find their way. The one destined for an eternal damnation. This is the ministry of Jesus and we must make it a top priority in our lives. Why? Because heaven and hell are real.
As Christians, we must consume ourselves with becoming the laborers that God longs to thrust into His harvest fields of the world. Those in the 10/40 window and those right next door. God is looking for a new generation of laborers—young, seasoned, and middle-aged laborers who won’t settle for business as usual, but will accept the responsibility of working to advance the Kingdom until we see multitudes running into the arms of our loving Father.
Many don’t have a desire to see lives transformed; they are distracted by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life as spoken of in John. However, God is shaking us. He’s demanding our attention and drawing us closer. He’s calling out to us, shifting our focus from the lust and pride that distracts us to what He has called and loves most—people.
When we think about going deeper we must realize it’s impossible to do so and not experience God’s heart for a hurting humanity. His heart beats for people, and walking with Him in a deeper way means that our hearts will also beat for people. We will become more sensitive to the needs of the world around us and less focused on ourselves. Let’s really go deeper—the lives and destiny of others depend on it.