This past week, I have found myself deeply convicted about doing more to help advocate for the elimination of child slavery in this world. My good friend, Paul Mergard (from The Salvation Army in Austrailia, East) helped to expose me to the injustices that exist in this insidious enterprise.
This morning (note at 4:30 AM!) I dropped Paul 0ff at the airport. While making my way home, I pulled into a pit-stop on the highway to pick up a freshly brewed, grande cup of jet-black (fair trade) coffee. While enjoying this life-saving drink, I noticed on the side, a neat thought by Lyall Bush (the cup was "The Way I See It #282"). Its' description of childhood reminded me about how many kids in this world do not have the opportunity to experience this ideal.
It says,
"Childhood is a strange country. It's a place you come from or go to - at least in your mind. For me it has an endless, spellbound something in it that feels remote. It's like a little sealed-vault country of cake breath and grass stains where what you do instead of work is spin until your dizzy."
I pray that one day, AIDS-orphaned children in small African villages; Mexican kids living in sewars; child slaves making carpets in India; and children caught in the cross fire of gang-warfare in Ameican inner-cities will be able to one day enjoy cake breath, grass stains and spinning until they are dizzy.
2 comments:
very moving quote. Q:how do we go about interpeting the world events slavery, death, and still enjoy life. It all becomes very depressing. I pray with almost all hope gone, until that faithful day of full redemption.
Hi Anonymous,
Thanks so much for your passionate words. I would agree - with all the misery that seems to exist within the world, it could all become exceptionally depressing...
However, in my experience, what I have discovered is that when we go to the abandoned and forgotten places to be with the abandoned and forgotten people of this world, I find that there is a brilliant, resilient, joy-filled hope that emerges in the midst of such devastation. This can only be because of the presence of God in this world that growns and longs for the day of redemption.
I believe in many ways that it is our responsibility as citizens of this world - and as a believer, of the kingdom that is to come - to pray the Lord's prayer... "May your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven."
Because of my belief in kingdom hope - something far greater and realistic than utopian idealism - I choose to live my life with my eyes wide open to the injustice, misery and suffering that exists in this world - not with a nihilistic fatalism, but so that I can search for and discover the ways in which God's kingdom is coming in the midst of...
Just some thoughts...
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