NOTES

Surrounded as we are today by a 24-hour news cycle and social media bombardment, the injustices of this world can feel overwhelming—153 million children orphaned, forced displacement of a record 103 million people, rampant human trafficking, martyrs across the globe, school shootings, and ongoing conflict that destroys too many lives before they have a chance to start.

In the face of this darkness, we can feel powerless. Our hearts grow weary. But God would not be a faithful comforter to the afflicted if He did not also promise justice on behalf of His people. He promises to defend the defenseless. To restore the brokenhearted. To destroy the evil that preys on His children. This is the truth that undergirds our compassion with an unflappable hope; we know the end of the story. Even as we intercede on our knees for justice for the oppressed, we do so with confidence in the character of our King. He breaks every chain. He conquers death. His is the victory.

Questions to Consider:

How can our hope in God’s promise of justice for the oppressed prevent us from experiencing “compassion fatigue”? How might this differ from how unbelievers approach an issue?

What are some ways you can reflect God’s heart for justice in your own life? Try to think of five ways you can start putting these into practice this week.

Prayer Points:

Spend a few moments journaling and talking to God. If you need some help, here are a few prayer points to get you started:

Praise the Lord for His heart for justice and His faithfulness in fulfilling each of His promises.

Ask God to begin to develop that heart in you. Spend some time in stillness in the Lord’s presence, listening.

Pray for orphans, trafficking victims, refugees, victims of trauma, and others who are oppressed. Ask the Lord to intervene on their behalf, and to fulfill His promise to bring them justice.

Verse of the Day:

Deuteronomy 10:18

God’s character is defined by how He cares for His people. He rescues and comforts, protects and promises justice. Even so, as His followers, our calling is to mirror that character in a broken and bleeding world. Our daily lives should be marked by unshakable compassion, sacrificial service, and extravagant love. Whether you live on a mission field in a rural town or in a big city, you can walk out this calling to reflect God’s character in how you demonstrate compassion to those around us.

As you seek to walk worthy of this calling, He is ready to wrap your heart in a beautiful promise: Your obedience will bring light, healing, righteousness, and the covering of the glory of the Lord. You were born to echo His heartbeat to a hurting humanity. You were born for such a time as this.

Verse of the Day:

“Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.”

Isaiah 58:6-8

Questions to Consider:

What do these verses tell us about God’s heart for how we are to live as His followers? What are His priorities for us?

Pause and reflect: How closely does your life today align with His priorities? What are three ways you can incorporate the calling in these verses into your week?

Prayer Points:

Spend a few moments journaling and talking to God. If you need some help, here are a few prayer points to get you started:

Spend some time praying for those who are suffering around you—in your neighborhood, your church, your community. Ask God to fill you with a renewed passion for pouring out your life for those who are oppressed, hungry, poor, and in bondage around you.

As we prepare to delve more into our calling in the coming days, spend some time praying that God would equip you with the power and perseverance to walk worthy of this calling.