I Can't Fix the World

It is easy to get overwhelmed by the needs and the opportunities to serve in our families, churches, communities and the world. And it's easy for this to paralyze us.  I like checking things off my list so I tend to avoid putting things on my list that aren't attainable, preferring instead to add things like "take out the trash," or "send card to Emily."

I see how broken the world is and I want to fix it but "Fix the world" is something that I don't have the time and resources to accomplish.  So what do I do?  As a child of God, my heart is being conformed to his and his heart is for the world to be filled with justice. He wants us to relate rightly with those around us at the smallest levels (like in our families and work relationships) and at the largest levels (international institutional structures).  But we are, I am, so far from this.  I see how broken things are and get paralyzed.  The need is great, but I'm not thinking about it correctly.

"Maybe we can't fix the world, but we can change it."

                   - Ken Wytsma, Justice Conference 2012

God doesn't expect me to fix the world but he does expect me to change it.  And I can do that in a hundred different ways from where I am.  I can more rightly relate to my family by being present with them when I am home.  I can more rightly relate to my coworkers by not speaking ill of them when I'm frustrated.  I can more rightly relate to God by taking my burdens and hurts to him instead of eating them away or drowning in my anxiety over all that needs to be done.  I can more rightly relate to the earth by picking up trash when I see it.  I can challenge larger structures of injustice by learning more about immigration policy so I'm making educated decisions and can educate others.  I can help stop economic injustice by sending money to organizations who are responsible in empowering people in third world countries lift themselves out of poverty.

I don't have to fix the world, but I can change it.