Defend the Oppressed

Photo: no know copyright restrictions on Flickr Commons

http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/7985822862/

Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.

Isaiah 1:16-17

Seeing these little dirty faces grabbed me.  Living on a farm is dirty and everyone is expected to work...even the little ones.  My husband was on a tractor at the age of 5 and he had to stand up to work the clutch.  When the baby came, he had to baby sit while his mom and dad milked the cows.  He was 5.  The next year another baby came...now, there were two under the age of two.  Later in the day he was on the tractor.  All he knew was work.  There are no child labor laws on a farm.  He says he had a good life because he worked hard and he was proud of himself that he was able to help his family.  His parents were also proud of him and depended on his help.  Today he has a tremendous work ethic and a healthy self esteem.  There are those, however, who are exploited by cruel people...ones who use them and abuse them.  These are the ones we need to defend and God commands that we do so.  We have prerequisites, though...wash and make ourselves clean, take our evil deeds away, stop doing wrong, learn to do right, and seek justice.  Maybe when we're not so fixed on ourselves, we will be able to focus on others.