Midweek Musing- 2/5/2025

My former boss, now friend, and one of many mentors, Letitia Cline, used to close the morning announcements at Boston Elementary School with the statement, “Make it a great day or not, the choice is yours.”

I was recently reminded of that quote when a Boston Elementary alum who is also my youngest daughter, Sydney, left that very message sitting on my desk as motivation.

I mention this because if you read through what my brother says are often too long musings you will see a similar question for each of us to consider.

The Nobel Prize winning world leader Nelson Mandela often said, “The character of a society is discovered in how it treats its children.”

Reading that quote this week made me wonder how we are doing as a nation and world.

Now sadly, the truth is that both in the United States, and much of the world, the way we treat our most vulnerable—the children—reveals what I can only describe as an epic moral failure.

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that 1 in 7 children in America lives in poverty. Among Black and Latino children, that number is 1 in 4. In total, 11 million children in perhaps the wealthiest nation in world history grow up without access to basic necessities—food, stable housing, healthcare, and education.

These numbers are more than statistics; they are an indictment. We are one of the richest nations in the history of the world. We are a nation that prides itself on prosperity and opportunity. And we allow millions of children to suffer, often in silence.

But even more than how these facts indict our American promise to live as We the People, these realities reveal how we have ignored God’s clear and repeated command throughout scripture to care for “the least of these.”

From the Old Testament to the teachings of Jesus, God calls us to actively protect, support, and uplift those in need. The Scriptures make it abundantly clear that our faith is not just about personal devotion but about how we live out justice and compassion in tangible ways.

Wayback in Deuteronomy Yahweh declares we are to seek justice for the vulnerable. “God executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and loves the strangers, providing them food and clothing.”

God’s character is defined by love and justice for those who are most at risk—widows, orphans, and the poor. If we claim to follow God, then our lives and daily choices should reflect this call. And furthermore, if we say we are a Judeo-Christian nation then our policies, practices, economic priorities, and structures should reflect this call. However, in the U.S. and across the globe, children remain some of the most neglected members of society.

Later in Jeremiah chapter 22 the prophet cries, “He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me? declares the Lord.”

In this passage, the prophet Jeremiah reminds us that faith is not about religious rituals but about how we treat the poor. If we neglect our children, if our leaders fail to prioritize their needs, and if we remain indifferent to their suffering, then we cannot claim to be a people that truly seeks God’s will.

Finally James who was Jesus brother and disciples writes in his epistle, “If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,’ and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So, faith by itself if it has no works, is dead.”

Our best words will not fill an empty stomach. Thoughts and prayers will not provide stable housing. If we see children suffering and do nothing, our faith is hollow. James makes it plain—if we are not actively working to alleviate poverty, advocate for justice, and provide resources, then we are failing to live out the Gospel.

It was our Lord himself who said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.” (Matthew 19:14)

Jesus not only welcomed children—He raised them up. The kingdom of God belongs to those who recognize the value of children, who ensure they are protected, fed, and nurtured. When we neglect children, we are neglecting the very people Jesus told us to prioritize.

Sadly, it seems our world is structured in ways that favor the powerful while leaving the vulnerable behind. Consider these additional realities:

   •   Global Child Poverty – Over 350 million children worldwide live in extreme poverty, struggling to survive on less than $2.15 per day.

   •   Child Hunger – In the U.S., even more than the 11 million children in poverty will face food insecurity at some point during the year meaning during a period of time they do not consistently have enough to eat.

   •   Educational Disparities – Children from low-income families are significantly more likely to attend underfunded schools, limiting their future opportunities.

   •   Housing Instability – Over 2.5 million children in America experience homelessness at some point each year.

These statistics paint a grim picture: we are failing to protect and care for the very ones Jesus commanded us to love.

As followers of Christ, we cannot remain passive. The call to justice is woven throughout history and scripture. And as such God’s expectation is clear: We must act by not only meeting immediate needs but working to eliminate those things that cause such needs to exist.

If the character of a society is measured by how it treats its children, what does the data we have just seen say about us? What does it say about a world where millions of children are hungry, homeless, and without hope?

God’s call is clear: we are to defend, support, and uplift the most vulnerable. The church cannot be silent. We cannot be complacent. Jesus tells us that the kingdom of heaven belongs to the children—and further we are told we will be held accountable for how we cared for them.

So let us act. Let us fight for justice. Let us build a world where truly no child is left behind, where no child goes hungry, and where the love of Christ is made real through our hands and hearts.

Will we rise to this call? Or will history judge us for our indifference?

As my friend Letitia Cline reminded me for years – “The choice is ours.”

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Alleluia Amen.