It was the 4th of July. We were driving into our old neighborhood and two motorcycles were a short distance ahead of us.

Everything seemed fine as they took the left turn into their apartments.

Suddenly I saw one of the riders rolling across the sidewalk and his motorcycle was down.

He went a little wide and hit the curb.

My wife and I, now just past the scene, made a quick u-turn, pulled off the road and went to the fallen rider. One other man stopped. I think he was an off duty fireman.

That was all.

It was a beautiful neighborhood, on a holiday with plenty of people passing by. But nobody else stopped.

Fortunately, his injuries seemed to be bruises. His helmet left skid marks on the sidewalk. It would have been horrible if he wasn't wearing one.

As he slowly got back on his feet and began to regain his bearings, it was apparent he would survive to rid another day. We helped him get his motorcycle up and leaned it on the kickstand so he could assess the damage.

Then he thanked us for stopping. That's when it struck me. As obvious as the need was, nobody else stopped.

I don't know why at least a few more didn't stop, or at least slow down and ask it they needed to call 911, but the reality concerned me. It was a holiday. People getting together with friends for cook-outs and getting ready to watch the fireworks. How could they miss seeing a person in need?

It seems that even more than working on caring skills, we need to increase our capacity to even want to care. That addresses a deeper need and a bigger problem.

Has our culture become so overwhelmed by the vast amount of needs in our world, most that are beyond our solving, that we have given up on caring at all?

In this blog post I simply raise the question based on what I saw. I know there are many caring ministries, and social programs addressed at needs. There are many dedicated and compassionate people working to help. But often, the needs are greater than the resources and the volunteer base needs to grow.

Even more, many of our social problems would cease to exist if people cared better for those closest to them at home, at work, in the neighborhood, at church or on the highway.

I'm thankful for the two of us who stopped, and for all the caring people there are and every situation I encounter when I see people caring for others. I'm thankful, beyond words, that God is a caring God and we are "the sheep of his pasture, the flock under his care."

So, what do you think we need to do to increase our capacity to care so that we are known for our care and everyone feels God's love and care?

Your care matters.