What We Need and Deserve

Prayers are not enough…needs justice and healing…needs to know why…deserve answers.

I understood the sentiment behind the social media post, yet it bothered me.

First, prayers are indeed sometimes not only enough but the most important offering of empathy and support we can give. Prayers are not “all we can do” as if they are our last resort when we cannot find practical ways to help. Should prayers be accompanied by action? Yes, when healthy, constructive action is possible. I mean, Jesus didn’t tell us the good Samaritan stood on the opposite side of the road from the beaten man and prayed then walked on. In the parable, Jesus refers to the Samaritan’s pity, care, transport, and financial support. We get involved as we have the opportunities—and we pray.

Second, our need for justice, healing, and answers is real. Our need is also misguided. We experience and receive some justice, healing, and answers in everyday life. Some questions, offenses, and struggles are taken care of in this world in this lifetime. But if that is how we always expect to get our justice, healing, and answers, we will never be fully satisfied. If we expect all of those things from the world instead of from God, we will be disappointed. We need to be careful not to be misguided and trust the wrong sources for justice, healing, and answers.

I know when we are struggling, we desperately want what we think we need, but then we are disappointed when we don’t get it. It’s different when we look to and trust God for justice, healing, and answers. We might still feel as if we don’t get what we need. We still might get frustrated by the process and result. But there is a pursuit and peace in the process. God provides some of the justice, healing, and answers by the means of the world, but that’s not the complete provision. If it was, how pitiful our provision would be.

Our justice, healing, and answers are limited in the world in this lifetime, because God’s perspective is eternal. He uses the now but in the context of always. And that’s something we simply can’t fully fathom. But we can lean toward finding contentment in it.