“Let my heart be broken with the things that break the heart of God,” Bob Pierce, founder of World Vision. I thought that quote was a nice sounding sentiment that any follower of Jesus Christ could agree with. Last Sunday at a most unexpected time, I discovered what it truly means. In the midst of my sermon on poverty, as I was describing its terrible consequences, I suddenly found myself so choked by emotion I could hardly speak.
I think three factors triggered my response. First is the fact that recently I’ve been reading an incredible book that I think every Christian needs to read. In The Hole in the Gospel, Richard Strearns tells how he went from being the CEO of a major corporation to being the president of World Vision and some of his experiences since assuming that position. I found myself being challenged in ways that rarely happens. After a message I preached a number of years ago, an old farmer said to me, “You were really nipping at my heels today.” I’ve heard those types of comments, but as I read this book, I felt like I was being chased by an Irish wolfhound.
Secondly, seeing the living conditions of many of the people of Nicaragua first hand during our trip there left me speechless. How does one adequately express walking into someone’s home that consists of a 8’ x 12’ lean-to constructed of sticks and black plastic in which they keep all their worldly possessions? Or how can anyone explain what it’s like to feed individuals whose hands are black from digging through burnt garbage looking for anything of value and their children who have never gone beyond the confines of the dump which they call home.
Thirdly, I am convinced that the Holy Spirit was working in me, convicting me and transforming me. Being broken isn’t any fun. But for many of us, it is not until God does cause our hearts to break that we can begin to fully appreciate what God is calling us to do. So here’s my prayer for you, that you will allow God to break your heart with the things that break His. If all of us who call upon the name of Jesus let that happen, we would change the world.
I think three factors triggered my response. First is the fact that recently I’ve been reading an incredible book that I think every Christian needs to read. In The Hole in the Gospel, Richard Strearns tells how he went from being the CEO of a major corporation to being the president of World Vision and some of his experiences since assuming that position. I found myself being challenged in ways that rarely happens. After a message I preached a number of years ago, an old farmer said to me, “You were really nipping at my heels today.” I’ve heard those types of comments, but as I read this book, I felt like I was being chased by an Irish wolfhound.
Secondly, seeing the living conditions of many of the people of Nicaragua first hand during our trip there left me speechless. How does one adequately express walking into someone’s home that consists of a 8’ x 12’ lean-to constructed of sticks and black plastic in which they keep all their worldly possessions? Or how can anyone explain what it’s like to feed individuals whose hands are black from digging through burnt garbage looking for anything of value and their children who have never gone beyond the confines of the dump which they call home.
Thirdly, I am convinced that the Holy Spirit was working in me, convicting me and transforming me. Being broken isn’t any fun. But for many of us, it is not until God does cause our hearts to break that we can begin to fully appreciate what God is calling us to do. So here’s my prayer for you, that you will allow God to break your heart with the things that break His. If all of us who call upon the name of Jesus let that happen, we would change the world.
Recent Comments