cruel neglect

Lamentations 4:3-5 (JDV)

Lamentations 4:3 Even jackals offer their breasts to nurse their young, but my dear people have become cruel like ostriches in the wilderness.
Lamentations 4:4 The nursing baby’s tongue clings to the roof of his mouth from thirst. Infants beg for food, but no one gives them any.
Lamentations 4:5 Those who used to eat delicacies are destitute in the streets; those who were reared in purple garments huddle in piles of garbage.

cruel neglect

The precious children starve, victims of cruel neglect. Will we allow God to speak to us with this ugly image? How many precious children around us are starving due to our cruel neglect? How many who could be reared in purple garments huddle in piles of garbage instead?

We have told ourselves that they are not our problem. We might even pray for them and ask God to help them. But what if our compassionate God wants us to intervene and restore them?

Lord, forgive us for our cruel neglect. Show us how to invest ourselves in the children and families around us who could benefit from our attention. May this coming new year be a year where we see the hurt and neglected around us, and take action.