As a follower of Jesus, what should I DO in the face of all the oppression and injustice in the world? In between being distracted by the drones and the gnats buzzing around my head, sitting in the jungle on the edge of a mass casualty event, I realize the centrality of my faith and the God who has guided me, step by step to this place. I believe in a loving Creator whose one expectation of us is to love. More specifically, to love Him with every part of our being, to learn to experience His love for us, and to extend that love to those around us—our neighbors. But especially to those on the margins of life without the means to stand for themselves. In that context, the beggar on the side of the road becomes as important as the genocide on another continent. So, what should I DO?

Martin Luther King said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” I believe, directed by God, our obedience leads to the reverse as well… injustice made right anywhere affects injustice everywhere.

 Nowhere in the Bible are we called to save the whole world. That’s God’s job. But we are called to heed the inner voice that urges us to take care of the situation or need directly in our path. The parable of the Good Samaritan being a great example. And often, I have found that the first step is fairly easy. I doubt the naked bleeding victim on the side of the road was the Good Samaritan’s first round with desperate situations.

So, if… and only if... you feel the Logos inside you urging to take the guy talking in church out to lunch, do it. Or tutor some kid in English. Or talk to the beggar outside of Starbucks. Or get involved with an organization that moves you. But realize that the first step is often the beginning of a journey. One that may lead you to treating injured people on a front line somewhere. Or spending a year in the jungle teaching English and math to first-year PA students as it did for one in our EM community. Or supporting a PA student financially as it has done for two of our EM community members. What should you DO? Only you and your Maker can answer that. But know this… wherever that first step leads you… come what may… you can count on a dreaded warrior to be standing by your side…

...and sometimes in this world that’s exactly what you need.

"But Adonai is with me like a dreaded warrior." Jeremiah 20:11