“The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing.” ~ Albert Einstein
I don’t know if any of you saw the movie called, “The Counterfeiters.” I saw that movie several years back and even now, I remember how disturbed I was by it. I cried all the way home from the theater. It wasn’t until after I had stood on my back deck in the moonlight for a while, and was in bed in the dark that I finally stopped tearing up.
Visual images have always had a great effect on me … I guess because I studied art and graphics. This movie was very, very hard to watch. I know about the holocaust. I know the facts of it. I know the depravity of it. But when I watch the graphic depiction of the cruelty that human beings can do to other human beings, it makes me feel despair physically and emotionally and spiritually. I wondered how the survivors lived with any peace and love at all after that experience.
I know that I sometimes have evil in my own heart. I often am not involved enough when I know that some evil is happening. In most cases, I am at a loss as to how to really help in any significant way. When we are bombarded every night and every day with incredible evil all over this globe and in our own cities, I get discouraged. I try to figure out what I can do.
After waking up with all of these questions still in my head, I quietly prayed that God would help me be courageous enough to make a stand for good and against evil wherever I find it.
In my own heart. In little situations that seem inconsequential. In the way I spend my money. In what I do every single day as I go about my daily tasks. After watching that movie, I will be more conscientious to actively do good. I think one thing that a midlife divorce does is make us more aware of the suffering of others. We understand a little more about agony and pain and heartbreak. That is a good thing.
That can be a positive motivator for us to step up to help others who are struggling. We all have countless ways every single day to choose good and to stand up against evil. Maybe it’s simply encouraging and helping someone who has been on the receiving end of a selfish, harmful action by an ex-spouse. Maybe it’s volunteering at an organization in your neighborhood that offers a safe haven for women. Volunteers represent a valuable part for these organizations and play an important role in helping them achieve their mission to break the cycle of domestic violence and partner with abuse survivors and their children to put them on a safe and healthy path for their futures. See if something like this exists in your home town and help where you can. Let’s all do what is good however we can wherever God puts us today.
“Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.” ~ Romans 12:9 (NIV)
