Day 16. Counter-Cultural Love.

I was thinking yesterday about a sermon I once heard from my boyfriend, Tim Deller. He talked about the Samaritan woman in John 4. Jesus loves this "outcast" with counter-cultural love. He knows her past. He knows what she has done. He doesn't care about that. He offers her the gift of eternal life, something that will satisfy her desire to be accepted and loved.

Tim presented two questions to think about based on this passage.
Who is it hardest for me to love? Who is it easiest for me to overlook?

When I think about who is hardest for me to love, pimps and traffickers definitely come to mind. God tells us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. I know I don't spend enough time praying for pimps, traffickers, and johns, but they are just as much in need of redemption as anyone. Culture would tell us not to love them. They commit heinous crimes against innocent people. Culture would tell us to make them pay for the wrong that they have done. But as Christians we are called to love all, just as Jesus did. It's not our job to judge them. This does not mean accepting their behavior, but it does mean approaching them with counter-cultural levels of love.

Who is it easiest to overlook? It is easiest for me to overlook those who are not in my path everyday. It's easy for me to forget about the people who are victims of human trafficking because it's not in my face. Reading stories of injustice has definitely helped bring these people to mind more readily and pray for them. Going to Thailand also has made it even more real. After seeing it with my own eyes, there haven't been many days that have gone by since July that I haven't thought about the people that I saw and met and pray for them. I encourage you to make it more real for you. Read stories. Go to a place where you can meet people who experience injustice. And you don't have to go half-way around the world. You can get involved with Basics in Milwaukee or even serve the poor at the Milwaukee Rescue Mission. Get out of your comfort zone, and you'll be surprised by how God will bless you for your obedience to him. I have been blessed beyond belief by being involved with several organizations in Milwaukee and around the world. I am a different person because of it, and I am thankful.

Here are some more stories you can read about victims of injustice. Let God change your heart and grow in compassion for people he cares a whole lot about. I am praying that for you and for myself. If you have any questions about how you can get more involved in this fight, please let me know.