A Psalm for our generation ...

Lord, I’m bewildered and depressed by the injustice I hear about and see, day after day; I’m angry that it goes on and on and on and on;
What can one man do in the face of such great need?
I’m knackered through trying to address these issues and fed up that I’m powerless to make any difference.
But it’s not me that needs you to intervene,
it’s the marginalized strangers, you know, the ones you implored us to welcome.
Lord, where’s your care and concern for ‘the least of these children of mine’?
Why does a civilised society that supposedly champions the cause of freedom for the oppressed, allow those who flee to our shores for safety ...
to go without a roof,
without a bed,
without a crust,
in the hope that they’ll eventually get fed up and slope off home?
Where are you and your justice Lord?
Has someone stolen your scales?
But I know, or at least I hope, that you have seen the story unfold for every individual who lies awake at night unable to sleep or rest because of the physical and emotional trauma they have experienced back home and the shock of exclusion and disbelief they have encountered here.
You — the tortured One — felt the brutal pain of their imprisonment, their beatings, their torture, their rape
You — the rejected One - you listen to the cries of those rejected today; you stand alongside them and offer solidarity, comfort and acceptance;
You — the despised One — know each fearful prejudiced thought that leads to mistrust and disbelief; and you know the truth.
The actions, words and thoughts of us all are weighed in your scales.
Bring justice Lord, and please don’t let them wait another day.
Amen!

Written by Jeremy Thompson, Befriending Coordinator of Restore (Birmingham Churches supporting refugees and asylum seekers)