Sunday 27 January 2013

Lights of Impact

This world is an evil, hateful, lost place in dire need of goodness, love and hope. Our calling as believers in Christ is to make a difference on the earth and to shine like stars in the darkness. We were not meant to live ordinary, comfortable lives. Christians have sat in their comfort zones for long enough. It is time for the Church to arise and ignite a flame that could change those around us forever. There is supposed to be a distinct difference between believers and non-believers, but so many have been swept into the tide of this world. Life is too short to be wasted on things that do not last; things that, in the greater scheme of things, do not really matter. We were made to live a life completely sold out to Jesus; a life spent following His Will and striving daily to bring Him glory.

I challenge you today to not follow the crowd and try to “fit” in, but to make a difference while you can. God has gifted each one of us with different abilities and callings; we need to use them to impact those around us at school, University/College, work and in our social lives. God needs to be infused in every part of our daily lives. We cannot sit by while the world dies. I know that the problems of this world are so large that they can be exceptionally overwhelming. But that does nott mean that we do nothing to help others in need, to love those who we do not like, to serve selflessly and to give hope to the desperate. I will admit I fail in these things every day. But I am realising how important it is to live a godly life of integrity- a life that lives wholly for God- even though it may set us apart from the “in” crowd. Our time on earth was meant to be extraordinary. Each of us has a choice how we will spend our years. You have only one life to live, will you use it to love others or to work for your own gain? You may think that you are too small to make a difference; just one tiny drop of rain. But together, drops of rain can turn into a river. By yourself you may only be a tiny pinprick of light in the stark darkness, but together we shine like a city on a hill, visible for all those around us to see. 

Saturday 12 January 2013

27 Million Voices

Picture drawn by Jess Leigh

Yesterday was National Human Trafficking Day. So I thought I would post this poem I wrote during the week to create awareness on modern-day slavery.

For the 27 million people held in slavery all over the world
Their cries resound all over the earth;
Cries of suffering, cries of hopelessness.
Yet few really hear them, nor are there many left to care.
They are like a vanishing wind;
Whispers of their fate are heard, yet they are left unseen.

They are bound like broods of animals,
Living a life they did not choose;
A life stolen by another.
They are forced to go where they do not want to go,
They are forced to do what they wish not to do.

Their time on earth is a living hell,
Imposed and controlled by heartless ones.
There is no escape, there is no freedom;
They are chained to their unwanted fate
While their souls cry out in agony.

Can you hear them?
Their silent cries are echoing
Against every corner of the earth,
Pleading to be set free
While sinister fingers grip them mercilessly.

Some heed the call and head into battle,
Striving to save the captive ones.
Others turn a deaf ear, a blind eye
And their hearts turn to stone,
While 27 million voices continue to scream in silence.