Becoming Numb to It

   There was another robbery on Main Street. Someone was killed in another car crash. ISIS attacked another big city. And, on and on it goes. Do you ever feel like you are beginning to become numb to everything going on in the world? I know I have felt that way. It is like everywhere I turn some horrible thing happened. More and more sin is occurring and the American culture is going down the toilet.

   Christians are also starting to slip. It only takes a few times for us to do the same sin over and over again before it becomes a habit. That sin may not even be a blatant one. It may be a sin of omission where we look the other way and don’t do what we know we should do.

   Another issue with becoming numb to things is we become numb to the Bible and people who are preaching the Bible. If you are like me you have been in the church for many years. You have heard the same Bible stories over and over again that you know them by heart. You may even think you don’t have much more to learn from the Bible. If you have reached that point I am sorry to say you will probably be knocked off your feet soon enough. (Because, if you are not growing and learning more about God then you cease to be of help to your fellow man. On top of that, you are admitting that God isn’t God. If we knew everything about him then we wouldn’t need to worship him).

   One other point I want to make in this is the fact that it is more difficult for the entertainment industry to entertain people. Why is this? It is because we become numb to certain things. We want new and more exciting things. But, there is a danger to wanting this. First we can see where the entertainment industry is today. There are sex scenes, violent acts, and many more gruesome things on television. And then we wonder why there is so much violence in the world; and why it is so difficult to teach children in general.

   How can we stop the numbness? We need to have childlike faith. Every time I reread a book of the Bible, or any book, I find something new. Children are curious and want to learn, if they have a curiosity for learning fostered in them. We need to try and learn new things about God in order to grow closer to him. And, when it comes to the world, we need to put ourselves in others shoes. Many times we don’t really care about something unless it affects us. But, if we think about how we would feel if that was our family member who died; or, if we just lost our home. How different do you think the world would be?

   Above all else, we must lean on God during these difficult times. I don’t know exactly what will happen tomorrow, or next year. But, I do know that if I lean on God everything will be alright.

   So, have you become numb to sin in your life or the world? What are you going to do in order to counteract the numbness? Have you lost your childlike curiosity? Are you going to lean on God no matter what may happen tomorrow?

   1 John 3:6-10, Matthew 18:3, Proverbs 3:5-6