Niger:How Many Times Has This Happened Now?
I was thinking about the situation in the African country of Niger, currently enduring a famine the media typically term a "humanitarian crisis." As I looked at the sparse attention given to it, I noted how much even the most well-intentioned people just don't get it.
I'm going to go out on a limb and assert-- I know, this is daring-- that the reason for the abject ignorance is because they all refuse to look in the one place where they'd get it, and that place is in the pages of the Bible.
What does the Bible tell us in light of what is going on all around us?
It tells us that God put Cain in charge of the World System to mitigate the sin of those who refuse to put their trust in Him. (You can read about it in chapter four of the book of Genesis.) The way Cain and his agents do that is
1. Build a city and command allegience to receive the benefits of its glory.
2. Entice people into destitution in order to rescue them.
3. Gratify the wide demand for violence among his followers by engaging in war and writing profound mythologies.
4. Use the humanist modality that man alone can be good enough to solve all problems-- philanthropy, community service, and the like.
5. Keep religious people in state-churches through incorporation as non-profits, thus grafting them to the World, oath-bound and fearful.
6. Exploit that fear in dozens of imaginative ways to keep people in subjegation. (Just look at the dazzling campaign of terrorism-counter terrorism.)
7. Mobilize people with the spectacular media extravaganza, the idea: "Whatever the media cover is worthy of our attention, what they don't is meaningless."
This is in contrast to Jesus' way, which is to
1. Take out the one thing that causes the problem to begin with: man's sin.
2. Interact vibrantly with those whose trust is in Him.
3. Demonstrate real love so they'll know and express love themselves, driving out fear in the process.
4. Pour out blessings upon blessings (material and spiritual) that exceeds anything Cain can offer.
5. Mobilize His followers to step out in His love, and with His gifts change the hearts of those they encounter.
6. Use Cain and his city as a footstool-- the key idea: people will see the horrific bankruptcy of the city and turn to the Kingdom.
7. Establish a community of those who truly care about one another, and will sing hymns and praises to Him out of the fertile joy that results.
What does all this have to do with Niger? It is simply that the Niger famine destitution problem has happened a million times over history. Why does it keep happening?? It is because no one ever considers trying the One thing that would work! Christ!
When asked to consider this option, as I am asking right now, the humanitarian powers-that-be almost invariably say, "Oh but that's just religion. We need more than pie-in-the-sky piddle. These people need to get fed!"
Of course they do! But you've tried food banks and World Banks and foreign aid and all the other things for years and years and years and they still come up short. No one has ever tried Jesus--the real Jesus, not one of the fake ones that abound in the World. The real Jesus fed 5,000 people with a half-a-basket of fish and bread. Another time he fed 4,000 with the same amount of capital. What is interesting about these stories is that when the people came back for more, do you know what Jesus said? He said no. He said no! Oh my, how mean and cruel of Him.
Why did He do that? He explained it very clearly. He knew that they needed more than just food. They needed understanding. They needed wholeness. They needed healing. They needed to be assured their souls were safe in the hands of the Living God. With all of this, ahhh, then they could use those wonderful gifts God gave them to work and plant and sow and harvest and feed themselves for a long time.
This is what the people in Niger need right now. As much as they need any food, they need The Word, and then from Him come a whole bunch of "little" Words who sow.
It's funny, the director of the Inter Region Economic Network in Africa, James Shikwati said, "When aid money keeps coming, all our policy-makers do is strategize on how to get more. They forget about getting their own people working to solve these very basic problems. In Africa, we look to outsiders to solve our problems, making the victim not take responsibility to change."
Mada Roufa, an employee of Doctors Without Borders, added, "We need to find other long-term solutions. We can't just address emergencies."
There you go. Cain's way is to keep people in that destititution so he can keep rescuing them and showing everyone what a great guy he is. People who don't try Jesus keep buying it, and keep going hungry.
But then there's The Long-Term Solution.
What do you think about that Solution? Why don't people try it?
For a bit more about how to be a part of the Solution, click here.
I'm going to go out on a limb and assert-- I know, this is daring-- that the reason for the abject ignorance is because they all refuse to look in the one place where they'd get it, and that place is in the pages of the Bible.
What does the Bible tell us in light of what is going on all around us?
It tells us that God put Cain in charge of the World System to mitigate the sin of those who refuse to put their trust in Him. (You can read about it in chapter four of the book of Genesis.) The way Cain and his agents do that is
1. Build a city and command allegience to receive the benefits of its glory.
2. Entice people into destitution in order to rescue them.
3. Gratify the wide demand for violence among his followers by engaging in war and writing profound mythologies.
4. Use the humanist modality that man alone can be good enough to solve all problems-- philanthropy, community service, and the like.
5. Keep religious people in state-churches through incorporation as non-profits, thus grafting them to the World, oath-bound and fearful.
6. Exploit that fear in dozens of imaginative ways to keep people in subjegation. (Just look at the dazzling campaign of terrorism-counter terrorism.)
7. Mobilize people with the spectacular media extravaganza, the idea: "Whatever the media cover is worthy of our attention, what they don't is meaningless."
This is in contrast to Jesus' way, which is to
1. Take out the one thing that causes the problem to begin with: man's sin.
2. Interact vibrantly with those whose trust is in Him.
3. Demonstrate real love so they'll know and express love themselves, driving out fear in the process.
4. Pour out blessings upon blessings (material and spiritual) that exceeds anything Cain can offer.
5. Mobilize His followers to step out in His love, and with His gifts change the hearts of those they encounter.
6. Use Cain and his city as a footstool-- the key idea: people will see the horrific bankruptcy of the city and turn to the Kingdom.
7. Establish a community of those who truly care about one another, and will sing hymns and praises to Him out of the fertile joy that results.
What does all this have to do with Niger? It is simply that the Niger famine destitution problem has happened a million times over history. Why does it keep happening?? It is because no one ever considers trying the One thing that would work! Christ!
When asked to consider this option, as I am asking right now, the humanitarian powers-that-be almost invariably say, "Oh but that's just religion. We need more than pie-in-the-sky piddle. These people need to get fed!"
Of course they do! But you've tried food banks and World Banks and foreign aid and all the other things for years and years and years and they still come up short. No one has ever tried Jesus--the real Jesus, not one of the fake ones that abound in the World. The real Jesus fed 5,000 people with a half-a-basket of fish and bread. Another time he fed 4,000 with the same amount of capital. What is interesting about these stories is that when the people came back for more, do you know what Jesus said? He said no. He said no! Oh my, how mean and cruel of Him.
Why did He do that? He explained it very clearly. He knew that they needed more than just food. They needed understanding. They needed wholeness. They needed healing. They needed to be assured their souls were safe in the hands of the Living God. With all of this, ahhh, then they could use those wonderful gifts God gave them to work and plant and sow and harvest and feed themselves for a long time.
This is what the people in Niger need right now. As much as they need any food, they need The Word, and then from Him come a whole bunch of "little" Words who sow.
It's funny, the director of the Inter Region Economic Network in Africa, James Shikwati said, "When aid money keeps coming, all our policy-makers do is strategize on how to get more. They forget about getting their own people working to solve these very basic problems. In Africa, we look to outsiders to solve our problems, making the victim not take responsibility to change."
Mada Roufa, an employee of Doctors Without Borders, added, "We need to find other long-term solutions. We can't just address emergencies."
There you go. Cain's way is to keep people in that destititution so he can keep rescuing them and showing everyone what a great guy he is. People who don't try Jesus keep buying it, and keep going hungry.
But then there's The Long-Term Solution.
What do you think about that Solution? Why don't people try it?
For a bit more about how to be a part of the Solution, click here.
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