“Test Everything”
I’ve never seen this phrase used in church mission statements. Not really the kind of slogan you’d expect to find in faith based organizations. I tend to think of someone like Freud using this statement. Yet of all places to find this phrase, the Bible encourages us to do just that…. test everything (1 Thess. 5:21).
To quickly summarize the verse, Paul challenges us to dokimazô (examine, test, prove or scrutinize) pas (everything, all things) and katechô (take hold of, possess, retain) kalos (good, excellent, genuine). Paul is painting a picture of what we do in chemistry class. We probe and experiment with certain solutions and minerals until its down to its pure form. What stands the test of our experimenting we keep (diamonds) and melt away the rest.
Lately I’ve questioned whether the church has done enough testing of what is deemed “good”. We as Christians have let our hearts assume that when we feel we’ve done a “good” deed it should be just that. Let me elaborate on the idea that we should always be testing whether our intentions of doing good are actually causing good results.
Any easy example of good intentions but poor results is giving candy to slum children. As great as it is seeing little eyes light up at the sight of chocolate it destroys dental health. With little to no access to dentists in the poor villages of Africa, candy will soon begin rotting away their teeth.
A personal story I have with good intentions becoming burdensome deals with how we handle the homeless. A mom living in a shelter with access to cable television, private sleeping area and someone cleaning up after her everyday is giving her little motivation to find a place for her own. This is leaving her kids to deal with finding friends that have families willing to let them stay. I think we need to look deeper at what we consider “good” because of what kind of negative effects we can have by giving a helping hand.
One night me and a friend were having a conversation about the idea of testing everything. My friend’s statement insisted that some things don’t need to be tested. She proceeded to give an example about how giving her sandwich to a guy on the street shouldn’t have to be tested first. What if however by examining the situation, you discover that giving your sandwich he becomes one step closer to being dependent on charity. What if by examining the situation you realize giving that sandwich will intrinsicly say, “You can’t help yourself so I’ll help you.” Maybe I’m wrong but this message would weaken the confidence of one questioning if they can really be self-sufficient one day.
I believe by testing everything you keep passionate servanthood and elavate charity to a higher standard. I want to see long-term success and the alleviation of all injustices in the world. I think is starts with digging deeper into the causes of why there’s injustices happening around the world rather than blindly throwing money and time at them hoping the situation will change. Let’s develop plans that not only give relief to those in need but ALSO give sustained quality of living.
My hope is not just for a better today but a stronger future. My purpose in WR is not only to assist in world relief but to teach, encourage, exhort and instill confidence in those that will continue to press on even when I’ve gone away to help another.
