The Lord upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. (Ps. 145:14)
A WOMAN ONCE SHARED with me her story of being held as a sex slave for two years. As a teenager, Ruth had tricked her parents into thinking she was spending the weekend with a friend, but really she had sneaked off with an older neighbor who promptly sold her into slavery. Her shame kept her in captivity even longer than the schemes of evil men.
Human trafficking is real and terrifying. And it’s close to the heart of God. Any child of His who is vulnerable and suffering is close to His heart. If you read Scripture often enough, you can’t help but notice a theme regarding the character of God. He is passionate about social justice, and He does not tolerate evildoers who bring harm to other people. He promises again and again to avenge those who are mistreated.
God doesn’t always act in the way we want Him to. We want Him to save us from suffering; instead, He upholds us, giving us strength for our circumstances.
Ruth is now actively involved in protecting girls from human trafficking in the country of Sierra Leone. Her gentle and yet courageous spirit demonstrates the power of God to transform victims into healers. She gives us a vision of what today’s passage means: God sees each of His children, especially those who are broken and in need, and He upholds them.
Allow God to use you to bring justice to the oppressed.
Heather Gemmen Wilson is the author of the Global Warning Series (Wesleyan Publishing House), a fiction series for preteens. She is married to a Wesleyan pastor and together they have six children.
