What does my heart REALLY ache for?

After publishing this post last night, I continued to ponder what it really means to have a heart for the world. I read a few of the other posts on Radical and came across one that really made me stop and think about my motives for reaching the hurting of this world - whether here in America, or overseas. Sandee over at We Are Family (who by the way is an adoptive single mama of four) wrote this statement:

"I want to have an ache for the lost souls. 
Not just an ache for tragic circumstances." 

Wow.

This is one area that I am realizing is inconsistent, if not incomplete, in my own life. I ache for the tragic circumstances around the world, and do what I can to raise awareness and to help those in need, but do I boldly (or even meekly) tell people about Jesus? Not really, no. I seem to care more that people are living in uncomfortable (and even very, very harsh) circumstances than care that, if they don't know Christ as their Savior, they will be separated from God for eternity. My perceptive, even a noble one that aches for the poor, is still skewed towards the things of this world.

Now, it is obvious throughout scripture that God has a heart for the poor and that those who love God are to care for the poor, the needy and the forgotten.

"But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?" - 1 John 3:17

Out of obedience to God and out of love for those He has created, we as Christians are to care for the least of these. But with our concern for a person's physical needs, must also come an even deeper concern for a person's spiritual needs. This is something I think I miss a lot of the time. Yes, I exclusively support ministries that address both the physical and spiritual needs of those they serve, but I am ashamed to say that the physical needs are what pull at my heart the most.

It is here that I must check my motives.

Do I do things out of obedience to God in order to bring Him glory so that others might believe in Him, or because I want to help someone in a difficult circumstances? The latter is not wrong, but if it is done without the focus being for God's glory and salvation, than it is only a temporary fix to an earthly problem. A fix that may not have any impact on the real need - person's spiritual well-being.  

Something to think about.