The Weekly Word - A Devotion for the Week of September 9
I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous hand.
-- Isaiah 41:10
This week, as images of the tremendous devastation wreaked by Hurricane Dorian dominate the media, as search and rescue operations turn to recovery efforts and the death toll continues to rise, we would do well to heed the advice Fred Rogers’ mother once offered him as a child. “Look for the helpers,” she told young Fred when he was frightened or overwhelmed. “You will always find people who are helping.”
When we look for the helpers, we see how God is indeed with us, sustaining and strengthening us even in the midst of the most catastrophic natural disasters.
God is behind each heroic act, each sacrifice and each gesture of love and compassion as neighbors and strangers alike reach out to help and comfort one another.
God is present in the first responders who risk their own lives to rescue those who are stranded or injured.
God is at work through disaster relief volunteers, medical personnel and pastors who are providing shelter, emergency healthcare, food and spiritual sustenance.
The “helpers” are God’s hand and feet here on earth, strengthening, comforting, helping and holding those who are suffering.
Heavenly Father, please strengthen, help and comfort all who are suffering in the wake of Hurricane Dorian. Please continue to work through the hands, hearts and feet of all those on the ground in the Bahamas and the Carolinas who are bringing help and hope to so many. Amen.