A call for action – volunteers needed

In this increasingly narcissistic society of ours, where you see…“it’s all about me”, I would like to suggest a new and refreshing approach, a bold and radical vision that is …back to the basics. It does not take a lot of money, or a lot of time, just a little bit of sweat and a big heart. Whether it’s building a ramp for a handicapped person, or fixing a leaky faucet, or painting a room, or raking the backyard, or providing transportation for an old widow to do grocery shopping, or simply visiting with a lonely person that just lost his job – you get the idea. We don’t have to solve the world hunger problem, but there are so many little things we can do for the people in the community to touch their heart and make a difference in their lives. In the process, we allow God to shape and mold our characters. Jesus said that even a glass of water will not go without being rewarded. It also may be the best way evangelize and lead people to Christ.

It is not about pumping out your chest, dripping with arrogance and self-righteousness and talking dawn to them about how they should be. It is not about lecturing them from the pulpit, crushing them with your supposed superior morality. It’s about rolling up your sleeves and getting your hands dirty, and doing it with joy and passion and humility, expecting nothing in return. It’s about getting down in the trenches with them and feeling their hurt and their brokenness, offering them a shoulder to cry on, or just being there for them. Jesus said that every time we do any of these things to people we did them to him.

Life is too short to be wasted in a continuous infighting, getting entangled in an endless quest for power and control in the church, with all the politics and manipulation in order to satisfy your SELF and worship the beast inside called EGO. The hunger for fame and significance that started at the Tower of Babel is well and alive today in our churches, tearing them up, one congregation at a time and ripping through the body of Christ. It comes to show the small-mindedness of those engaged in it. The greatest Romanian poet echoed the same feeling in his masterpiece Luceafarul: “ traind in cercul vostru strimt norocul va petrece iar eu in lumea mea ramin nemuritor si rece”

You are invited to rise above it, to break away from your own self-centeredness and start living for a higher purpose – serving others. People are longing for something authentic. Can we say enough is enough? Can we rekindle the spirit of voluntarism and start having a powerful impact on this country (USA), leaving behind the fishbowl mentality that gripped our churches for so long. Remember faith is something you do. You don’t have to be perfect to join, none of us is. We come with an unpretentious attitude and with the understanding that, as frail human beings, we all have our own struggles, our own flaws and failures. Having the courage to admit our own imperfection, the courage to lower our guard, to open up and become vulnerable is the very key to achieve closeness and true fellowship with each other; the courage to break loose from hypocrisy and stop perpetrating that we are something we are not. Jesus said: “let the one with no sin throw the first stone”.

Then, liberated from the burden of projecting a perfect image on the outside, we can now focus and channel our energies to help others. If any of these resonates with you, please join together and form a group of volunteers for Christ in your church. There should be no hierarchy, no formal structure, no politics, no hidden agenda, no pomp and fanfare, just a passion to go out in the community, crossing any denominational and ethnic lines and do good in the name of Jesus. The Bible says that Jesus was going from place to place to do good to people. Let’s identify the needs around us and look at them in a whole new light – as precious opportunities. One day He will say: “come good servant and inherit the life that was prepared for you before eternity”.

Nick Rosioru

paxelectric@hotmail. com