Here I Am. Send Me…

In Isaiah chapter 6, we read: In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty… Then, I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send?”

Yesterday we reflected on how Isaiah’s calling took place in the wake of a major historical event that took place during his lifetime. These types of events often open our eyes to the great need around us.

I think about all the people who responded during the Civil Rights movement – women and men stepped up – even risking their lives…I think about all the blood that was donated in the wake of 911. I think about many missionaries I’ve met over the years who saw human need and suffering in world events and gave their lives in service in response.

A few weeks ago, I was listening to an interview with a woman named Colette Pichon Battle. (Isn’t that a great name! Colette Pichon Battle!) She is a Cajun from southern Louisiana, and she was the first in her family to leave home to go to college. She ended up becoming a powerful attorney in Washington, D.C. She had dreams about becoming Secretary of State or prosecuting international war criminals at the Hague.

But then in 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit, and her family lost their home and their land. Many of her family friends and relatives were displaced, and she felt a sense of calling to return home to help her people. Her work completely shifted after that. She returned, first to helping folks navigate FEMMA paperwork, and then later, working to help them preserve their land as an environmental attorney.

We can almost hear the calling for her: In the year Hurricane Katrina swept through the southern Gulf states, and the poorest of the poor were hit the hardest, I saw the Lord standing above the floods, saying who shall I send?

In this year of civil unrest and protests on college campuses, in this year when anxiety and depression among teenagers have reached epic proportions, in this year when hunger right here in our own country is acute, in this year when the struggles surface within our own families, in this year, even now, the Lord is standing above and in the midst of your life… calling to you, “Whom shall I send?”

Let us pray: Gracious God, open our eyes and hearts to even one small thing we can do, close to home today, to share your love and grace with others in need; in Jesus’ name. Amen.