Sandi Somers opened up our month with examples of individuals who advocated for change, such as Mother Teresa, in How Can We Engage in Social Justice? She writes, “Most of us don't have the stature of these leaders. However, God calls us all to embrace causes bigger than ourselves—causes which are near to his heart.”
The righteous causes that make our hearts break our causes that also make God’s heart break. Often our hearts are breaking because we have had personal experience with an injustice. I have a friend who experienced the broken judicial system of divorce and now has started a company focused on helping men through the trials of separation and divorce so tempers are less likely to flair and children are protected. I’ve seen ministries begin from peoples personal struggles such as eating disorders, cancer, and widowhood. Although the latter may not be termed as social justice issues, they are issues that God invited people to share in for connection, support, and healing.
If we are speaking, you would notice that I have a soft voice. This may be due being the youngest of five. Overwhelmed by the voices of my siblings, I didn’t talk much until I had to in school. Later in life, I took acting lessons to learn how to project my voice. Regardless, I never thought I would have a voice loud enough to make a difference. Yet, I have now learned, our voices don’t have to be loud to be a role in change. Acts of kindness, charity, and generosity are also services that create change and do not need a podium. These services also show God to our broken hearted world.
And if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
And satisfy the needs of the oppressed
Then your light will rise in the darkness,
And your night will become like noonday
Isaiah 58:10
Being faithful to God includes acts of service to others. Although we may feel small in this big, broken world of ours, God is not. Every act of service, even those with silent voices, bring His light into the darkness. Once I sat at a table at Hope Mission with a pastor who drove our city streets at night picking up the homeless, many with mental illnesses. I asked him how it was that he could keep the hope alive night after night picking up the same people over and over again, seeing no change within them? He replied, “I don’t serve me. I serve a God of miracles. And that keeps the light of hope alive.”
How can you keep the light of hope alive?
What breaks your heart? What opportunity do you see right now to make a difference in someone’s life?
Connect with Lynn at A Place to Breathe
Lynn, Thank you for your beautifully written post. As one who has a quiet voice, like yourself, my heart resonates with these words of yours: "...our voices don’t have to be loud to be a role in change. Acts of kindness, charity, and generosity are also services that create change and do not need a podium." Yes! Every person's gift(s) addresses the issues that break our hearts from different aspects, in different ways -- we don't all need to be podium pounders, but each one doing his or her part can and shall bring about the changes we long for.
ReplyDelete"Podium pounders" I like that term, Brenda. And yes, each of us is called to be faithful to do our part using our gifts in each opportunity God presents to us.
DeletePersecution breaks my heart. I especially feel sorrow for Christians but any form of bullying angers me. Having been bullied at a residential school, I understand that hopeless feeling of not being able to do anything but take the harassment. I've written embassies about this as well as world leaders. This is something we all should do. It may not seem so but our voices do matter. And at least we did something more than grumble to ourselves.
ReplyDeleteBruce, the anger from your experience that leads you to take action is a righteous cause indeed! It is so true that we are not called to 'grumble' but to do something.
DeleteWhat a beautiful post, Lynn! I particularly related to the way you emphasized that God is the One who brings light through our acts of service: "Although we may feel small in this big, broken world of ours, God is not. Every act of service, even those with silent voices, bring His light into the darkness."
ReplyDeleteThank you Sandi. To remember too, that it is not about us, not about the light shining on us, also keeps God in the centre of all our actions and not attached to the outcome for our own egos to relish in. I know I have to continually work on getting myself out of the way!
ReplyDeleteI will add my voice to those that have already commented. Beautifully written. We need more soft voices to balance out the overbearing. Often a soft answer is what is heard loudest. When a soft voice speaks, people suddenly become quiet and listen. Proverbs says a soft answer "turns away wrath".
ReplyDeleteThank you, Lynn. I love the theme of finding one's voice, especially learning to use it as a champion and advocate for others.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lynn. Will be thinking of ways ‘to keep the light of hope alive’. A thought provoking lovely post.
ReplyDelete