“Go out quickly into the streets
and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the
lame.... Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that
my house will be full.” Luke 14:21,
23
The Salvation Army in Central Ohio ministers to trafficked women through a
program called, “The Well.” It’s a
drop-in center where these “least among us” – manipulated or coerced into their
plight and then bound there by invisible chains of addiction and intimidation –
can find respite, even if just for a few hours.
Broken in every way – physically, emotionally and spiritually – they can
yet find food for the stomach and nourishment for the soul at The Well.
One day after discussing the first chapter of Genesis, one of the women there
approached the social worker who had led the study. Speaking on behalf of the group, she said, “You
always told us we were valued and special, but we never understood what you
meant until you showed us in the Bible that God made us in his own image.”
It’s a profound moment when one who lives life with head bowed in humiliation
looks up and sees the reflection of God in the mirror. Must all miracles be tangible? No! Liberty is born on the inside.
Is there a lower rung on the social ladder than a woman or child so
enslaved? If so, I can’t imagine
it. But God works among the downtrodden,
those with no illusions of worldly grandeur.
For those who’ve lived in darkness know a great light when they see it.
So God sends us into the world with kingdom banquet invitations to
deliver. He points us to the streets and
alleys, to the roads and lanes – wherever the D-listers among us can be found –
and says, “Go.”
Father, please send your Holy Spirit
today to show me who you would invite to your banquet. Grace me to speak and to act as you lead
me. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen
[To see the daily reading in Luke 14:12-24, click here.]
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