Ministering to a Suffering World
When we read the stories in the Gospels, we see Jesus responding to suffering in many ways. He spoke with people who were suffering. He ate with them. He touched them. He wept with them. Sometimes he healed them. Jesus did not ignore suffering. He did not run away from it or pretend it didn’t exist. He offered those who are suffering his presence. He gave his attention to people who were hurting.
These are the moments that tie our hearts to him—when we are suffering and he is near. And, at Every Home, that is what we’re carrying to the world: the gift of Christ’s nearness for all who suffer.
Today, statistics point to a world that is fractured and increasingly without hope—suffering at alarming rates. According to the World Health Organization, 13 percent of the planet is now living with a mental health disorder, including over 300 million with an anxiety disorder, 280 million with a depressive disorder, 40 million with bipolar, and 24 million with schizophrenia.
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This is all in addition to people who are living in the midst of war, a global refugee crisis, poverty, hunger, homelessness, and all kinds of physical diseases and ailments. All around the world, people are living with—and dying from—tremendous pain and trauma.
These are not people in far-off places or foreign countries. They are people we know—our family, our neighbors, and our friends. They might be people within our homes; we may even find ourselves among the suffering. These groups, with common ailments, cross borders and are bigger than many people groups. They are a mission field in and of themselves.
This is what keeps Every Home teams moving. Every day in over 150 nations around the world, we are carrying hope to people in the midst of their pain. We carry the compassion of Christ, inviting the people of God to see those suffering through his eyes and to be motivated by his compassion for them. Our goal is to catalyze the Church to show up in the lives of people who are searching for answers, connection, meaning amid chaos, and hope.
We cannot do this alone. We need you. Your neighbors need you. Your community needs you. This world needs you. People are suffering—many of them, in unseen ways—and they need the hope you carry. They need your presence. They need your attention. Will you join us?
May the presence of Christ be near to the suffering of your heart, too, even as you offer your attention to the suffering of others. May you know that you are seen, held, and loved by the God of all creation.
