Hurricane Matthew blows through Haiti. Hundreds dead. Then it hits the coast of Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. More dead. Thousands displaced temporarily or long-term. Basic utilities taking days, weeks, or even months to be restored. Weeks after the storm, water-borne diseases start cropping up, after the world has lost interest. And this is just one natural disaster out of many. We face several major disasters each year, and many of them span several years, such as the refugee crisis in war-torn Syria. Then add cities shaken by terrorist attacks and mass shootings, even within our own borders, and we're in danger of becoming numb to the constant need of recovery.
We are asked to pray, asked to give, asked to change our social media profile pictures to show support. Then there's backlash from skeptics about asking for prayer or guilt from others because you didn't pray their thing when you mentioned that you had prayed for another thing. "You prayed for France - why aren't you praying for Haiti?"
So many needs, so much devastation. How should we respond? How can we respond? Do I respond to all of them a little (and if not, how do I justify turning a cold shoulder to a legitimate need)? Do I respond to none of them? Do I respond to a random sampling of them? Maybe I respond to only those that affect my country, but then our needs aren't any more important than others'. Maybe I should pray for special revelation from God as to which to respond to before doing anything at all?
I suggest:
First, respond to at least one. Do respond. Get your response muscles working and active. Even if you pick one worthy need somewhat at random, respond to at least one per year. The only other option is inactive callousness.
Second, don't feel bad for not responding to all of them (or for any one of them in particular). Ignore those who are upset that you didn't respond to their favorite one. This is between you and God, not you and them. The only other option is failing to live up to an impossible standard.
Third, think about how you want to focus. Maybe you'll focus on natural disasters, or focus on areas where Christ has not yet been named, or focus where God has already connected you. Lynne and I are already connected to Italy and Kenya, so it would make sense for us to focus our attention there (but not expect you to). The only other option is to have no good reason to be able to say "no."
Fourth, it's better to think ahead about how to respond than to wait for things to happen. Then when we do respond, it won't be based on our mood that day, but rather on rational conclusions made without urgency. The only other option is repetitive stress each time something new comes up.
Fifth, pray. Of course, pray. The only other option is to not pray. In other words, the only other option is to try to figure this out only by the flesh.
Whatever you do, be sure to check out the organizations you intend to help through. Do your homework. For financial support, check out charities with websites like Charity Watch (https://www.charitywatch.org/home) and Charity Navigator (https://www.charitynavigator.org/). After Matthew hit Haiti, some groups in Haiti plead with Americans to not send through organization X, because "it will never get to us." Giving comes with the responsibility of choosing well to whom to give.
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