Have you thanked Him?
Have you praised Him?
Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?
Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?
1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)
The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.
“Our hearts of stone become hearts of flesh when we learn where the outcast weeps.” ― Brennan Manning
I sent this to a couple of my partners who are doing their best to help the homeless and chronically addicted in our communities. Sadly, there aren’t nearly enough who are currently listening or learning where the “outcast weeps”.
In fact, one of the leaders in these efforts replied to my email in this way…
“Even more so when we weep WITH the outcast.”
She is one who weeps often with them.
I mean, take that passage from which this little thought emanates…
I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you…Ezekiel 36:26-27 (ESV)
GOD promises to give us hearts of flesh, hearts that weep. And I believe He wants to accomplish this by helping us to embrace a spirit of SENSITIVITY to our surroundings and an awareness to the needs around us.
The challenge is that many ignore the “outcast”; many would rather walk to the other side of street, not make eye-contact, or assume the outcast has been cast out because he/she deserved it.
That is not always the case.
This is especially true for the “outcasts” I work with; the outcasts with whom I was once a card-carrying member. Yes, they/we made choices that helped fuel our circumstances, but more often than not, those “outcasts” were once embraced and welcomed before life, choices, and in my case addiction had replaced belonging and self-loathing replaced any modicum of self-worth.
And I think what the LORD is pressing in this passage from Ezekiel, is that GOD cares for and is deeply moved by the outcast and if we want to experience a fullness in OUR SPIRITS if we want to have our hearts pricked and enlivened, we much be willing to weep for and weep with the outcast as He does.
The LORD promises that HE will restore & heal wounds… (Jeremiah 30:17) and I believe that HE desires to USE us to “assist” in that process.
I do.
And much like Jesus who “wept”, this often starts with a little weeping.
But if our hearts are cold and stoney, we can’t be used. And trust me, we WON'T be used until we are willing to wade in, to weep for and weep with those who are outcast.
And I get that working with the outcast is challenging.
I get that it can be disappointing. I get that it can be frustrating.
But I can also assure you that when GOD fills your spirit because you allowed yourself to weep, you allowed you heart to be softened, you will never be the same, you will never regret that you engaged.
Trust me.
There is an ancient Chinese proverb that says:
“If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help somebody.”
And often that happiness is first discovered at the end of a good cry.
Have a blessed weekend my friends.
I love you all.
OPPORTUNITIES for HOPE
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