God Helps Those!

I finally had my chance to find out what people meant by, “Don’t want an abortion, don’t have one.” On a liberal “Christian” blog, someone commented, “Those that do not accept contraception or abortion, should not use contraceptives or have abortions.”

The final impression I got from the commenter was:

(1) Way back when slavery was legal in the US (also Jim Crow), I would have sat back in my chair and thought, "Those poor black folk sure have it rough." Consequently, I didn't think it necessary to join the Abolitionists in their struggle for racial equality of blacks because God obviously doesn't want to bother either.

(2) Way back when ethnic cleansing of Jews was legal in Germany, I would have sat back in my chair and thought, "Those poor Jews sure have it rough." Consequently, I didn't think it necessary to join the German Jews, Catholics, Christians, Gypsies, and people of good will in their struggle for ethnic equality of Jews (and Catholics, Gypsies, etc) because God obviously doesn't want to bother either.

(3) Since abortion is now legal in the US, I sit back in my chair and think, "Those poor unborn children sure have it rough." Consequently, I don't think it necessary to join Atheists, Jews, Catholics, Christians, Libertarians (and Democrats), and people of good will in their struggle for developmental equality of the pre-born because God obviously doesn't want to bother either.

During the end of this exchange I was remembering that (American?) cultural Christian parable where the person in a flood was being rescued by a helicopter and then by a boat. When the person got to heaven, they asked why they weren’t helped. God said that He sent the helicopter and the boat.

But instead of thinking of the person that went to heaven, I was thinking about the people driving the helicopter and the boat. If the drivers never came, God couldn’t say that he sent them.

I was very sad that the person commenting above didn't seem to want to do the right thing because he felt that God was abandoning certain people to the evil aspects of the world.

But then I got to thinking, does God help those who only help themselves? Many preachers say that this is false: God helps those who can’t help themselves. I’ve come to believe it’s another false dichotomy. Why can’t God help those who help themselves and those who can’t help themselves? Doesn’t God just help in many good ways seen and unseen?

Who does God help? God helps those! (Yes, it’s “them”, but it just doesn’t work in the same dramatic way.)

God helps those who can help themselves because he bestows many talents on people. God helps those who can’t help themselves by granting unexplainable courage along with natural (rain in a drought) and manmade aids (boat and helicopter and speaking out on behalf of the helpless). In the end, God helps in all good things even though we might not understand how or why.

So, regarding the commenter above, he’s not going in a helicopter or boat, he’s staying at home to type away at his computer to write about how pitiful some people are (including the unborn).

May we all remember those who can’t help themselves and answer God’s call in our own individual way to do God’s will for the benefit of others. May we also thank God for the talents he gave us and that we use them for His glory.