― Ralph Waldo Emerson
It's tough to live life without feeling like it has a purpose...I've had my share of days where I feel like, what am I REALLY doing...Sure, I'm a mom, and that's a great purpose, and sure, I do design, and that's a...purpose...and yea, I do the blogging thing now and then, is that a purpose? I guess it is...
But when I finally discovered my purpose - helping to further the Kingdom - as a mother, as a designer, as a wife, as a woman...life became easier to do. Hear me clearly now, life is not EASIER. It became easier to DO.
What kind of a purpose do you imagine men, women, and children, feel that they have that are trapped in slavery?
Join me today, as we pray that our Heavenly Father would reveal their purpose to them. Because they have one. God never created anything without a purpose, and he didn't begin the day that one of them was born.
They - Have - Purpose.
And so do you, pray with me now:
‘Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.’
Job 42:4
Creator God, we are crying out to you today to give our captive brothers and sisters purpose.
Let them see what you created them to do, to be. Open their hearts to know that the life they are living is not what you have willed for them, but that in the midst of the hardships and the pain and suffering, they STILL have a purpose.
Encourage their hearts, knowing that you LOVE them. That you made them to be amazing and that with you, they CAN do amazing things even in the midst of their slavery.
Help them to be able to look past the abuse and the daily horrids to see what you have in store for them.
Be their vision and their hope that there was a reason they were born that is NOT being a victim or belonging to anyone other than yourself.
Give them a reason to keep going, to endure, to push on other than just merely survival mode.
They are survivors and their stories have purpose. Help them to know that.
Dressember sent out another survivor story - it's so beautiful and tragic and redemptive all at the same time. In it was this excerpt:
Liana was brought to a safe house run by IJM partners. IJM’s aftercare team provided Liana with counseling and trauma-focused therapy, beginning a long journey of healing that will continue for years. And after the longest two years of her life, Liana is finally graduating from the seventh grade.
“With therapy, I’ve been able to overcome what happened to me,” Liana says confidently. “I think I have a big future ahead of me. Now, I can see myself caring for children, like a pediatrician.”
I love that on the other side, she sees a future for herself. A really, useful, purposeful one coming from her past. I hope that for all of the victims, that they have dreams while they are in slavery and that they are freed and can act on those dreams!
Have a merry Christmas and be sure to join me again on Monday for another prayer.
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