Dangerous Sunday morning devotions: The Refuge Crisis — He has told you, O man, what does the Lord require of you

This morning as we count the numbers “at” church, let’s remember one of the places where the church is most needed. While I do appreciate a comfortable worship service like most evangelicals on a Sunday morning, the evangelical Christian community should remember, recall it to mind, that it is not sacrifice the Most High seeks, but obedience (1 Samuel 15:22). While ancient Israel worshipped in a temple made with human hands (as we do similarly in our own buildings call "churches" made with human hands), Micah reminded God’s slumbering people:

With what shall I come to the Lord
And bow myself before the God on high?
Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings,
With yearling calves?
Does the Lord take delight in thousands of rams,
In ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts,
The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justice, to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:6-8)

Even when Jesus was asked about the most important command, Jesus narrowed it down to twins: Love your God with everything you got and love your neighbor as yourself. Nothing about buildings and standing in pew-like rows facing forward toward a group of people or a solo leader singing contemporary choruses with our hands raised and our hearts filled with ease, comfort, and peace. What Jesus did say is to harness what you have, love God and love your neighbor—these are the highest command (together).

How can we not see—in the news, on the radio, blog posts, Facebook news items, tweets—that the world is in one of the worst refugee crises since WWII. Between Syria’s civil war (if you can call it that, there are more than two warring factions) and the rise of ISIS, the Middle East and Europe are facing the worst humanitarian disaster in generations. More than 11 million people are displaced, and easily half of these are under the age of 18.

Wasted Evangelism aims to post Christian mission agencies and NGOs that are directly serving the current refuge crisis. Please do at least one thing to help in this time of crisis. 

Pray. Give. Go. Support. Send. Make Aware. Learn.

There are, I am sure, more organizations, but these are a start, and ones I could support myself. I will add to the list as time moves forward and I become more aware of them:

• CAMA Services of the Christian & Missionary Alliance >>
• Samaritan's Purse Responding to Refugee Crisis in Europe >>
• Doctors Without Borders rescues 1,658 people in the Mediterranean in one day >>
• WorldHelp Iraqi/Syrian refugee relief >>
• World Vision's Syrian refugee crisis >>