Yes, you.
God has called you to this work. Yes, you and your community can make a difference. Yes, you and your community can be the hands and feet and voice of Jesus on behalf of vulnerable people. Yes. You.
Do you feel intimidated? Afraid? Be strong and courageous, sister of the faith. The grand narrative of your life is not to pursue comfort and die. We have all seen people who had all the money and possessions and creature comforts in the world become consumed by what they consume. In Christ, you die to self and live for Him. Comfort becomes an idol that we tear down for the surpassing glory of Christ. So tear it down as an act of worship, and present your body as a living sacrifice.
God created you in His image, and you reflect His love and righteousness. You have a cloud of witnesses who attest to doing the right thing, right where they were, to glorify God by bringing about justice.
Your sister Eve overcame the grief of Cain’s murder of Abel and reared her son Seth to call on the name of the Lord (Genesis 4:25–26).
Your sisters Shiphrah and Puah defied a king and protected a generation of Hebrew boys, preserving the life of Moses (Exodus 1:15–21).
Your sister Miriam walked beside her brother Moses singing a victory song as the Jews walked—free!—through the Red Sea (Exodus 15:19–21).
Your sister Deborah kept her ears attentive to the Lord, judged justly, and commanded armies to protect her people (Judges 4–5).
Your sister Esther, despite being an orphan, a foreigner, and the wife of a despot, saved a nation from genocide.
Your sister Tabitha served the poor with such excellence and grace, they couldn’t let her stay dead (Acts 9:36–41).
This is just a sampling of the cloud of witnesses whose lives cheer us on, screaming, “Be strong and courageous, sister! All things are possible with God!”
Peter—who by God’s power raised sister Tabitha from the dead—assured believers when he said, “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3 NIV). We already have what we need. We need not fear, when God has given us a spirit of power, love, and self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7).