There are times when something reported in the news really sticks with me and i think about it alot. This particular time was the whole Putin shutting of the gas and wondering if folks are ok in Eastern Europe. i've been to some of the houses in that part of the world, and know, first hand, that in the winter, things can be quite chilly. If fuel for heating is cut off or slowed down, i am sure that there are some who are really uncomfortable and i really feel badly for them. But what can i do, right? i'm so far away and sending any kind of money now won't help them keep warm tonight....
So i lower my own heat and spend time in prayer for them.
i did the same some time ago when i learned that some missionary friends of mine had no electricity from 3pm - 6am every day and they lived in a very cold-in-the-wintertime country. The wife said how by the end of winter, she couldn't stand the thought of lighting one more candle for light and longed to just flick on a switch. i love candlelight and never thought that it would or could become a burden but then, i've never been forced to live only by candle light in the dead of winter. So for one week, after 3pm, i didn't use electricity. However, i also didn't flip off the fridge or the oven or the phone...but i did try to not use lamps or lights or the TV and it was hard.
Maybe it's a way of 'fasting' for me - or..well i just don't know, but i do know that when i feel this kind of burden, trying to at least identify with the folks who are suffering makes me far less likely to take my own comforts for granted.
i know it sounds like "eat your peas cause kids in Africa don't have peas to eat" that moms and dads use to create guilt for their kids, but it's really deeper than that. It's more like, don't waste what you've been given. Give thanks for what you have. Live responsibly and enjoy life and the comforts you find in your life.
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1 comment:
Hear hear!
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