Entitlement

I've been thinking a lot about the sense of entitlement and about Haiti. I don't have a television anymore so I've missed a lot of the graphic images, the stories, and I don't know that I've grasped the FULL magnitude of all of it all. A person I follow on twitter posted a link for a website. This website was started by a photographer who is over there currently. The pictures don't seem real.

Bodies lined up on the street. Not even covered. There's probably not enough covers to lay over them all. Bodies piled on top of one another in the buckets of bulldozers. Bodies coming out of the wreckage. One of a man standing outside of a clinic crying because he just found out that his 10 month old baby didn't make it. A picture of the ten month old. It looks like she's sleeping. That's what I tell myself to comfort myself. Ha...I'm comforting me?! In the midst of a father's tears my first reaction is to comfort myself from the images.

How predictable of me. How shameful of me. Once again, I think back to entitlement. Pat Robertson reacently made a horrific comment about the tragedy in Haiti. I've heard other comments since. As if to blame the people for the tragedy. As if to say if they'd been better it wouldn't have happened. As if to comfort themselves from sending any aide, or participating in relief efforts. I'm working on not becoming angry. Neither will help. Neither show Jesus. Often, I think Americans feel a sense of entitlement. We should have because we live in a free country. We should have because we work hard. We should have because it's the American way. Bigger. More. Faster. Smarter. Us vs them. "I deserve happiness." "I'm a good person so tragedy shouldn't hit me." I am guilty of thinking those things, too.

What I realize and remind myself of each day is that I am no better. I am more often than not a good person. I am guilty of turning away because it's not me. It's easier. I am not entitled to anymore than that father who is grieving the loss of his child. We are the same. A warm house filled with food, comfort, safety doesn't make me any better than this man who is kneeling in grief. It does put me in a position to help. If I do nothing...I remain guilty.

Now is also a time for those of us who believe in Jesus to put our faith to our feet. To put our faith into monetary help. To put our faith into joining that father (and countless others) on our knees in prayer. We pray constantly for God "to use us." If you are a Christ follower do you ever look around and realize that more often than not a nonbeliever is doing more than you? Ouch. I do.

I believe He continues to give us chances. Shame on us if we don't take them.


Below is a quote from "We're All in This Together." I had the privelage of seeing this back in November. It was amazing.

"When we ignore the prostituted child we lend our hand to their abuse. When we ignore the widow and the orphan in their distress that we add to their pain. When we ingore the slave who remains captive that it's us who is entrapping them. When we ignore the refuge that it's us displacing them. When we choose not to help the poor and the needy that we actually rob them. Perhaps, the only fair thing to say is that when we forsake the lives of others..we actually forsake our own."