Audience: Who Do You Love? (Part 5: Social Issues)

God has embedded within you a deep desire to serve others. It’s part of your spiritual DNA. When He created you, God gave you a “desire of the heart” to impact a specific audience.

For most believers, their audience is a group of people at their local church. This group may be based on age, gender, marital status, life experiences, or spiritual maturity. If your audience is a group of people, God has called you to meet a need in their lives. It may be accepting or growing in Christ; having a fulfilling marriage; recovering from addictions; grieving the loss of a loved one; or any number of other needs.

Instead, God may have given you a completely different type of audience. This audience is typically served outside the walls of the church. If your audience is a social issue, the focus of ministry is on making the world a better place. Your audience is a specific social issue in which you seek to right a wrong, solve a problem, or improve life conditions. These issues are related to specific social institutions – business; education; family; government; health care; justice system; media; military; or overseas relief efforts.

My friend Dan is concerned about the direction of our federal government, so he founded a civic non-profit, Re:Vision America (click here). As he explains, “We will be dedicated to  communicating a vision for our country, and to helping people use their gifts and talents to make a difference by providing the necessary tools to engage them in the rebuilding the moral, social, political and economic fabric of our nation by returning it to its constitutional foundation. We will be the true catalyst for driving change in America.  We can make a difference – and by working together, we will!”

I recently led a 5-week small group focusing on “Why are you here on earth?” One member, Jon, has a passion to end abortion. He knows it would be difficult for a man to counsel pregnant women or to help them recover spiritually and emotionally from an abortion. Instead, he’s considering working with men affected by abortions. Men often experience sorrow or guilt in not participating in the decision to abort their child. It’s also possible that Jon will assist an organization that lobbies to end abortions.

Tony is a member of my weekly men’s group. He’s passionate about men learning to be good fathers. He started a website called Savvy Daddies (click here). The website includes a forum for fathers to discuss various child-rearing issues and ideas. The site has survival guides for fathers with specific information based on the ages of children. There’s an entire section devoted to “raising savvy kids,” links to hundreds of articles, and a blog with stories, expert insights, and links to similar sites.

Another friend, Gordon, serves as Executive Director of the Chicago chapter of the Barnabas group (click here). This organization is part of a national movement with seven other groups around the country.  They provide marketplace leaders with ongoing opportunities to use their time, gifts, abilities and networks to support pre-screened non-profit Christian ministries. Designed to Serve® (click here) has benefited greatly from this ministry.

Our world and nation are messed up places. Jesus Christ is the only answer to the problems we face. YOU are Christ’s representative on earth. YOU are His eyes, mouth, hands, and feet in this world. There are needs all around you – everywhere you look. Maybe God has placed on your heart a desire to tackle an issue beyond the walls of your church? If so, identify it, take a step of faith, and become part of something larger than yourself. You’ll never regret it.

© 2010 Designed to Serve®