They sympathize with the poor, the homeless, the orphans, and they mourn for their helplessness and the little attention they seem to receive from the world.
But can we honestly say the same thing about those who are in spiritual poverty? Do our hearts really break for those who don't know Christ, for those who don't have the Holy Spirit, for those who have not received God's "glorious riches in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19)?
God just really convicted me of this right now. So much of my prayer life is devoted to physical restoration and sanctification, among other things (please don't get the wrong impression; most of the time my prayers aren't just lists of things I want God to do), but I spend very little time, comparatively, praying for the lost. My "heart breaks" more over the homeless people I talked to in downtown Athens than it does over my atheist friends. I just get frustrated with them for refusing to see the truth, instead of showing them God's love and praying that they would become more open to the gospel. And that needs to change. So please pray that God would help me set my priorities straight. And while you're at it, go ahead and pray for that friend you're trying to bring to Christ. Ceaseless prayer and a life of love will do much more than all the Apologetics you could ever throw at them.
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