God is in Your Midst
Zephaniah 3:17-19
This week again I heard of the poor in our world just trying to survive. In this case, a 14-year-old boy of Pakistan decided he would help his family survive by taking the dangerous route across foreign lands and by boat to Europe. There he believed he would be able to work and send back money to help his family, especially his deformed six-year-old brother. He became the victim of illegal human trafficking. He died when the fishing boat on which he was traveling capsized and over three hundred people drowned. Another tragedy was added to the fate of this family. What will happen now? What is the answer for those seeking sanctuary from war, persecution, and poverty?
The prophet Zephaniah lived and preached during the reign of King Josiah (640o-609 B.C.E.). He joined in with the voices of Jeremiah and Nahum who called for the people of Judah to repent. He announced to Judah God’s approaching judgment which would be terrible. Yet, he also made clear that God would yet be merciful toward his people.
To be amidst evil, victims of power struggles, and thrown into political, economic, and cultural clashes is difficult. It is to those who suffer the most that God reminds us that God is in our midst. Through the prophet Zephaniah, God says, “I will deal with your oppressors…I will save the lame and gather the outcast…I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth…”
Prayer: Be present, O God, with those who suffer. Change the hearts of those who do not seem to care for others. Amen.