Romans 4:20 “Yet Abraham did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith.”
Wrinkly old childless Abraham received an amazing promise in Genesis 12 about leaving his comfort zone and in due time becoming a blessing to all nations through his progeny. He obeyed immediately, not procrastinating, dithering or wavering. He acted on what God had told him.
In 1964, a 28-year-old woman called Kitty Genovece was attacked in a residential area of New York. She screamed for help for a full thirty minutes before dying from multiple stab wounds. Thirty-eight people heard her cries for help, some even looking out of the window and watching the attack take place, but none of them did anything to intervene, presuming someone else would. The term ‘bystander apathy’ was born from this event.
I wonder what bystander apathy there is in my life. What horrific injustice am I standing by, passively observing, expecting someone else to intervene and rectify? Action must trump apathy or else our faith is deeply flawed. Something needs to be done. William Barclay wrote: “The more often you experience the emotion of doing something without the action of doing something, the less likely that something will ever happen for you.” We can meet in groups to discuss doing something, and that experience in itself can be so stimulating that it creates the emotions that we have done something – but we haven’t, and it’s very likely that we won’t do anything. It’s like we’re waiting for God to do something whilst he’s waiting for us to do something.
As in Kitty’s case, lives are at stake and we can’t afford the luxury of being held back by past hurt, pride, apathy or embarrassment. I don’t think I’ve ever regretted responding to that sudden inner prompting of the Spirit to intervene in a given situation, even when the outcome wasn’t dramatic or extraordinary. But plenty of times I’ve regretted dithering and disobeying his voice. How about you?
Lord, today I resolve to be alert to your voice and to act on what you say. Amen!
Leave a Reply