Stepping Up!

Did you know that single parent homes accounted for 34% of all homes in the United States in 2009? Or that another 5% of homes included kids living with neither parent? (source) That's about 40% of families -- Two in every five homes!

My kids are blessed. Mom and dad live here, with them, together. At bedtime, they get two good-night kisses. They get two prayers. They get double hugs. When I'm having a bad day, I have back-up -- my kids don't have to deal with just me. Dad can calm the storms. (And I do the same for him once every three years on his bad day.) I can't imagine raising them without him.

A whole lot of families in this country don't have that same opportunity: Ready or not, they're raising kids the "hard way." Single moms and dads push through to "git 'r done." Grand-parents, aunts, uncles, siblings and foster parents stand in the gap, addressing hurts and pains, loving and nurturing the best they can.

Who's there to help? Sure, we have over-worked agencies and programs: Big Brother, YMCA, social workers and more do their best, but there's not enough government money meet the needs. There aren't enough volunteers to help everyone. School teachers give till their hearts break, called on to be counselor and conscience, not just teacher anymore. They can't do it all.

Church -- it's our job. "Learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow." (Isaiah 1:17) Plain English: Do right. Seek justice. Encourage. Defend. Plead for. Calls to action directed to the church -- God's people.

Yet we drive to church Sunday morning, dressed to impress. We sit in the pew, nodding our agreement with the pastor's wise words. We drop a token offering in the plate. We leave -- thanking the pastor and praising his efforts. We go home.

Just add one more thing to Sunday morning: Serve. One hour each week. Teaching kids that God loves them. Reminding them that God is there even though it's tough at home sometimes. Encouraging them to make wise decisions that will last a lifetime if they just learn them now. A hug. A tear, wiped away gently. A prayer offered from an innocent heart. Serve. Care. Be God's hands and feet.

Just a couple hours each week -- leading a Bible study group for women who parent alone. Encouraging them to discover God's truth: they are important. They are not forgotten. They can -- in Christ's strength -- do all things, even parent "alone." Offer to provide childcare for these groups. Pay for someone's childcare so she can attend a group. Serve. Love. Be God's hands and feet.

Just a couple hours each week -- be a Godly example to the fatherless. Men, these kids need you! Boys need to know what it looks like to be responsible, to listen well, to stand firm and not run away. Girls need to know that Godly men are humble, honest, kind and sincere. Who will model fatherhood to these future fathers? Who can show a girl what a "good husband" might be for her one day? Serve. Be an example. Be God's hands and feet.

Our call as Christians is to know God and make him known. (See Matthew 5:13-14 for Jesus' explanation)

Will you do it? Will you be one who does right, seeks justice, encourages, defends, pleads for? Or are you content to let a generation fall apart? What do you think God would like you to do?