I doubt I'm the only one to look at the citizens of Nazi Germans or the slave owners of the American South and wonder, "What were they thinking?"

Looking back at some historical conflicts often draws them into a sharp focus. It clarifies the issues.

(Other times, of course, it can skew our perspective entirely. Tim Urban, of Wait But Why, compared our view of Hitler to what we think of Alexander the Great.

"What Hitler tried to do is essentially the same thing Alexander tried to do (though with more genocide), but it was so long ago that the tragic element of it carries no emotion today. If Hitler had done his thing 2,400 years ago, we might know him as Hitler the Great today."

Good point.)

Anyway, I sometimes fear that I'm going to be like the Mennonites in Germany who supported Hitler, and not, say, like Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

In other words, I am afraid I will not think beyond the ideology of my time. I am afraid I will give in to short-sighted, self-protecting belief systems.

A research paper published in Mennonite Life details the reasons why Mennonites joined the Nazis.

"These factors include increased militarism among European Mennonites, survival tactics of the Mennonites, German nationalistic feelings, Antisemitism and difficult situations in the Soviet Union such as collectivization, violence, and anti-German sentiments."

"Survival tactics." "Nationalistic feelings." "Antisemitism."

Contrast those belief systems with Dietrich Bonhoeffer's unbending stance against Hitler's ideology and the church's capitulation to it. The Jewish Virtual Library explains his response to "Kristallnacht," the infamous night in 1938 when Nazis destroyed Jewish businesses and places of worship, and sent thousands to concentration camps.

"When his students were discussing the theological significance of Kristallnacht, Bonhoeffer rejected the theory that Kristallnacht had resulted from 'the curse which had haunted the Jews since Jesus' death on the cross.' Instead, Bonhoeffer called the pogrom an example of the 'sheer violence' of Nazism's 'godless face.'"

I don't see "nationalism," "anti-Semitism," or "survival tactics" anywhere in his words.

He spent several years in prison and concentration camps before the Nazis hanged him in 1945. Before his death, he wrote,

"'God lets himself be pushed out of the world on to the cross,' he wrote. ...'[The Bible] … makes quite clear that Christ helps us, not by virtue of his omnipotence, but by virtue of his weakness and suffering.''

From a man who moved back to Germany in1940, after he fled to the United States, these words portray his own experience. Bonhoeffer made himself vulnerable to serve dissenting Christians in Germany, to help Jewish people escape, and even to bring down Hitler.

Like Jesus, he died, defenseless, and yet not defeated. His voice endures. He was on "the right side." He is remembered as we all want to be: prophetic, compassionate, unwavering.

I wonder how I will be remembered.

I wonder what my grandkids are going to ask me. "Grandma, what did you do to help . . . ?"

Who are they going to read about in their history books? Children killed by abortion? Unarmed black men dying because of police brutality? The LGBTQ community? The refugees from ISIS's violence? Undocumented immigrants? People who had no access to clean drinking water?

What am I going to tell them? "Kids, there was a lot going on. Too many causes. I did what I could. I shared articles on Facebook that talked about those problems. I even wrote some of those articles."

(They'll probably want to know what Facebook is, but that's not really the point.)

Writing about people and causes is important. I want to be a truth-teller in my generation. I will speak out.

But how do I avoid becoming a slacktivist, and someone who encourages others to be the same?

(Oxford Dictionary: "Slacktivism: Actions performed via the Internet in support of a political or social cause but regarded as requiring little time or involvement, e.g. signing an online petition or joining a campaign group on a social media website or application.")

I do volunteer with a mentoring program, and hang out with the kids at the detention center. I give money to people who are working overseas, where I can't offer compassion in person (at least for now). I want to invest my time and money in things that matter.

But I'll be honest. I get tired. I lose vision for why I'm doing what I'm doing. I really enjoy the breaks I get from volunteering. I also tithe very sporadically. I am relieved if I can skip church. I often forget to (or don't want to) serve the people closest to me--my family.

The difference between "speaking out" and "slacktivism" is this: does my life speak as clearly as my words do?

Am I willing to serve like Jesus, in ordinary, un-glamorous ways?

Am I willing to "[let myself] be pushed out of the world onto a cross"?

I know I can't do everything, and I'm not trying to. I'm also not trying to guilt-trip anybody. I just want to be honest, with those of you who read what I write. I hope those of you who know me personally keep me accountable, because I want to live with integrity.

Jesus--and Bonhoeffer--taught us how powerful love is when it walks into dangerous places, caring about the vulnerable, not fearing the cost.

Grant me courage.