Whatever Christian: justice is what love looks like in public

Whatever Christian

Sunday, August 9, 2009

justice is what love looks like in public

Not a day goes by that I don't think about those who suffer. Their stories, their names, their faces all hang heavy on my heart. I refuse to become desensitized to suffering, even though sometimes it makes me feel like I might explode from grief. It enrages me. It's not acceptable.

The more I come into full contact with injustice, the more complex it gets. For many years, I've been dreaming big things about Haiti. Every time I think I've got a handle on the situation in Haiti, a new variable is added. Something else comes up that makes my previous plan fallible. Here is an example of the conversation that goes on in my head: "Haiti needs education. Ok, a school. But if the children are starving, how do I expect them to be able to learn? And what about when they go home? Who will help them with their homework? Ok... let's educate the whole family and give them meals when they come to class. When will the mother and father work? How will they make money? The children are all sick because they don't have access to clean water. Let's come up with a water filtration system... who will implement it?..." and on and on it goes. Pretty exhausting, eh?

Staring deep into to the eyes of a woman whose situation is hopeless beyond explanation forced me into a stark reality: I can't do a damn thing to change this woman's life on a scale that is comparable to her suffering. Because here's the thing: there is no hope, no hope... apart from Christ. I can offer no comfort, no reassurance, no peace, no hope unless I offer the hope of eternity spent in the presence of God.

I went to a Call and Response seminar where musicians and other celebrities try to tackle the issue of social injustice, specifically, current day slavery. Someone on the Call and Response video said "justice is what love looks like in public." If that's true, then the reality is that injustice is what sin looks like in public. Suffering is the manifestation of a world apart from Christ. As Christians, we are called to love. Romans 12:9 says "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good." This makes me wonder, where are the Christians in this situation? What are we doing? Is our love sincere? Are we clinging to what is good? Where are our seeds planted and what kind of fruit is growing? You may be able to educate, feed, heal, employ and empower people, but what about their souls? And what if you can't do any of those things? I know these things are heavy. Honestly, they should be. Maybe I'm the only one who struggles with the idea of evangelizing, but I doubt it. This is something that really challenges me and I hope to challenge you too.

posted by Carsen @ 3:16 PM

2 Comments:

At August 10, 2009 at 4:53 PM, Kim said…

You did challenge me today Carsen. Thanks.
At September 23, 2009 at 7:11 AM, Sarah Lynne said…

This picture is really moving; beautiful and tragic at the same time.