“The Cry of the Needy”
When we gather together for our Communion Service, we sometimes read a prayer that contains the following lines:
“Merciful God, we confess that we have not loved you with our whole heart. We have failed to be an obedient church. We have not done your will.”
Then after several other statements comes this one: “…and we have not heard the cry of the needy.”
“The cry of the needy” can come from all kinds of places. We often think of people in our own country and in other countries that are in dire circumstances facing war, disease, or hunger. And, we need to hear that cry. But sometimes “the cry of the needy” comes from our own hearts, we are the needy ones. And, we need someone to hear our cry.
Sometimes it comes from family members, from close friends, from members of our SS class, or someone else in our faith community. And the cry is sometimes soft and quiet, and we must listen carefully to hear it.
May our individual prayer this day be this:
“God, keep me open to the “cry of the needy” from wherever it comes. And help me to listen to what the Spirit is saying about how, where and when you want me to act to bring your healing presence to those who hurt.”
