Does It Make a Difference?

Working for years in the Anti-trafficking world, it has been interesting to observe trends. Most people really want to respond and care when something catastrophic happens. The whole concept of hashtagging jumped on that band wagon, and now we can’t imagine a world without social media and algorithms.

In fact we have so many emails, posts, tweets, reels, blurbs, and scrolls to work through in a given hour that being overwhelmed is normal. High adrenaline is a given. It’s normal to need caffeine to make it through having our hot buttons pushed yet again.

But does it make a difference?

Do you remember the hot button issues of, say, 2018? No. We are kept constantly current. And our current is overwhelming enough that we skim. For those who don’t have an in depth knowledge of what is really going on, it is easy to be led astray with a herd mentality. Say it often enough and it’s true; have a following and you’ve established yourself, right?

But does it make a difference?

Currently, Afghanist@n is a hot button issue. Many are rushing to airports to hand out water bottles to refugees arriving in droves, others are shuffling off donations to the Red Cross or Doctors Without Borders. Few are stopping to ask who has been there consistently, with the Gospel, who also have folks who didn’t leave en mass when things went south.

To be honest, it’s easier to scroll, or check the news, or maybe do a YouTube search. But the folks who are dedicated, on the ground, and working hard, with kingdom of God fruit won’t show up on any of those radars. There won’t be tweets or reels. They need to stay below a radar. And so a stream of donations goes flooding off to good causes, probably, but maybe not where careful thought and research would have placed those hard earned dollars in an effective setting with kingdom of God fruit.

To make a difference matters.

Take the time and ask. Push past the chatter and find out. There ARE people who are staying in country and are making a difference. There are women and children who are being saved and protected. There are negotiations which have re-opened up our widow and orphan home, allowing for more to be saved. The method our teams were using on the ground is such that they have not had to flee. Whereas they have helped about 50 women and children get safely out of the country for reasons that are specific to them, it will not help A’stan in the long run to have the best folks leave. We need Stayers. And we have stayers.

And that will make the difference.