Thankful That You're Not Like Those Who Suffer? Examining a Social Mindset

Others are in the hospital. Others are hungry. Others never got to wake up this morning. 
You're much better off so just be thankful.

I see FB posters saying we should be thankful we're not among those who suffer. Like, be thankful because other people are so sick and we're not. Or, others are starving and we have enough. Others are jobless and we're salaried. I stopped and asked myself, "Just be thankful?" 

Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash.

Well, we should be thankful. Agreed. But I don't think we're spared from suffering just to be thankful about it. Since I was a kid I never felt comfy seeing others suffering and I wasn't. There was this tingling pain inside and a nagging question in my head. "Why?" It only made things worse that I couldn't do anything about it. And why wasn't God doing anything, either?

Much later in life, I saw this mystery about how God actually felt the pain more than we can imagine and had actually sent help. Problem was, the couriers didn't deliver. They spent it on themselves and thanked God for the "blessing." Yeah, we should be thankful, but something's terribly amiss somewhere. And it needs thorough clarification.

The Blessing Isn't Yours

I learned it much later in life. I thought God blessed us to supply our needs, keep us amply provided and live happily ever after. Later I saw that we're all mere couriers. Delivery people. Sad that even in church this truth remains in the shelf gathering dust and cobwebs, sometimes deliberately kept there. We opt not to look at the delivery address and just claim things and thank God for them. We love sharing how blessed we are but don't see how clinging to the blessings cause others to suffer lack.

The blessing isn't yours. Clear enough? So we look carefully at the delivery address. We're fond of the cliché, "be a channel of blessings," but seldom understand what it means. We channel blessings only with our favorite recipients--ourselves, our church, our families, friends, and those who love us and give us attention. Such recipients ensure to return the favor. But Jesus warned:

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. [Luke 6]

God Supplying All Our Needs

We love quoting Philippians 4.19 about God supplying all our needs. We love to be blessed. But few see how it all ties up with the Philippians giving Paul what God intended for him. The Philippians received God's blessings but didn't claim it all for themselves. They knew that God intended a big part of the packaged delivered by them to Paul. They were just couriers. 

Other churches thought otherwise. They kept all the blessings to themselves, and I can imagine them proudly sharing their testimonies about how blessed they were. So Paul revealed everything to them, lest they take everything the wrong way. Here's the story:

Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles. 15 Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; 16 for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid more than once when I was in need. 17 Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account. 18 I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.

19 And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

Suffer with Those Suffering

God blesses us so we can suffer with those who suffer. We suffer when we share a lot more than we can, and in that we find joy and contentment. Thus, when we see how we're not like those who suffer, we bring their plight to the Throne and petition God like we're also suffering their predicament. 

And we don't just petition empathically. We give sacrificially, too. God blesses you to ease the suffering of another, particularly, another person who's the least in your list, the guy you're unlikely to help, people unattractive to our biases and preferences. A lot of folks are "helpful" and "generous" but only to their preferences. To those who pass their standards. 

But often, the delivery address belongs "to the least of these my brethren," says Jesus--people rejected by society.

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

[Matthew 25]

Like Your Own Son or Daughter

Whenever we see how we're better off than others, we should petition God for those others, bring them to the Throne and cry for their needs like we're praying for the very lives of our own sons and daughters. God looks for that quality and intensity in our prayers--as intense as mourning for our only child. Don't stop until they get what God has for them. 

They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. [Zechariah 12]

How God wants Blessings Shared

I saw a glimpse of how God wants his blessings shared with others. It's a 10 to 90 ratio, more or less; 10 parts yours and 90 parts shared with others. You allot an amount enough for your basic expenses and savings (your family is part of God's work) and then share whatever is left of it. Here's how the apostle Paul put it:

And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

[2 Corinthians 9]

You first secure "all that you need." Your basic needs and expenses. I believe this includes a little bit of savings, too, just enough to get ready for the next need. And then you can give the rest so you can "abound in every good work." The word "abound" hints at the size of the amount we ought to share (definitely not a mere pittance), and the words "every good work" hint how often. In the verse that follows, Paul states so clearly why God blesses us. The blessing is not for us. It's for God's work:

"You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion," [verse 11]

The blessings are all for God's use, intent and purpose. We're mere couriers. The package is not ours. If we all start thinking this way, no church, pastor, brethren, or people around us would be in lack. So much suffering would be taken away. 

Why the Poverty?

So, you see, poverty is there not just due to inflation, unemployment, overpopulation or corruption in government. First and foremost, it's there because people appropriate every blessing that passes their hands to themselves. The 5,000 would never have been fed and "satisfied" with the broken pieces of bread and fish if the disciples had bagged the blessing for themselves or their families. 

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. [Matthew 14]

The lesson should be applied by believers first--the church. What's the less likely people the church would bless? Here's a list, but I'm sure there's a lot more:

1. Folks who are unlikely to join their church or entertain the idea.
2. Where their cams are not available for videoing the distribution of blessings and therefore no chance of promoting it on social media. Church should start getting used to giving away blessings anonymously.
3. People from other denominations or other churches or religions.

I'd like to see well off denominations financially helping other denominations that are poor, or moneyed local churches financially helping out poor local churches belonging to another denomination. I want to hear about local churches shouldering the electric or water bill of poor local churches of other denominations. Being thankful your church is blessed while others suffer--and leaving it at that--is a garbage mindset.