A journey of 1,000 miles starts with a single step.

* I feel it necessary to include some sort of disclaimer right from the start. I plan to be honest about my feelings and the situations I am blogging about. Be prepared. With that said, here goes... *

I could sit here and write about how I have always cared about social justice and human rights, but the truth is, I didn't really care until I got to college. Or, perhaps, it is more accurate to say, my lifestyle didn't show that I cared until I got to college.

True, as I watched documentaries about Nazis, I was seething with anger and hoping they were all burning in hell. Yes, as I watched documentaries about slavery and the Modern Civil Rights Movement, I was confused as to how one people could treat another people as "less than" because of their skin color. I've handed out food to the unfortunate soul in Mexico and the Dominican Republic, I've prayed for the sick in Peru, and I've shared the love of Jesus with school children in New Zealand. I in no way doubt the validity of my feelings, the strength of my passion, or the power of my work overseas.

And yet, my lifestyle did not vary much from your average American Christian who does not understand that not every person standing on the exit ramp is a bum who would rather spend money and time getting drunk than looking for a job and providing for his/her family. I was very much that American Christian who thinks the solution is to throw money at the unfortunate poor half a world away. I was that American Christian who couldn't possibly fathom (or lived in blissful ignorance to the fact) that the way I live my life, the stores I shop at, the goods I buy, and the politicians I vote for, could have a staggering impact on the other billions of people who live on this planet.

Helping the needy and feeling indignation at the thought of discrimination are good things. Please hear me when I say that I believe these things are good and have power to change our world. However, when we help out once a year at a homeless shelter and think our work is done, something is wrong. And no matter how much we try to convince ourselves that we care, we do not... at least not as much as we ought to. True care is demonstrated by lifestyle, which brings me to the point of this first post.

How do we demonstrate the love of Christ to our dying and broken world? Is it simply by preaching the gospel? Doesn't James tell us that preaching the gospel with out demonstrations of love is pointless (James 2:14-17)? Understand that I am not saying that the gospel has no power apart from our demonstrations of love. But we can not possibly think that it is okay to simply preach the gospel and ignore the needs of the world. That is not what Christ did nor what He calls us to.

Furthermore, we can not live a lifestyle that screams the love of Christ if we are unaware. How do you demonstrate to your friend that you love him/her if you are clueless as to the issues he/she faces? It's time to become aware... it's time to act.