|PIC1|Romans 12........ Our lives poured out as an offering....... FURTHER thoughts on living the song.

Hear my heart today as I continue to share with you some what is resounding in my heart today. As a leader, and as a leader of worship, the responsibility to take the song of freedom to the streets , to take the song of hope to the lost is gathering great momentum - yes, nations are gathering with open hands and open hearts to the overwhelming need that greets the majority of humanity every day.

So, what is justice?? Justice is 'Jesus Grace'...seeing all people as equal no matter what their circumstances, poor or rich. Justice is the defining line of truth when it comes to the treatment of humanity... and social justice is the outworking of this truth, serving those unfairly treated, in a practical way. It is our role as Christians to see that no person is disadvantaged... and that every person has access to the good news.

On any given day, our newspapers could read '20 000 people died yesterday due to extreme poverty.....' This is the reality of what is happening today, so with great urgency in mind, we need to approach the magnitude of this uncomfortable truth, both locally and globally, intelligently AND swiftly. Working with experts, fuelled in prayer and inspiration... AND not trying to reinvent the wheel for the sake of it, but working together for the greater cause of restoring the true value of a human life. Even in Australia, which is my immediate frame of reference... the UK, the USA, we live in very rich countries... but we are actually a minority group when it comes to the standard of living that we are used to. Over 75% of the world's population live on less than 5 dollars a day. Just this stress alone and the impact of it on any family brings about a whole gamut of issues that are very real, and often the outfall is pure devastation.

People assume that the best way to help is to go to the mission field, but some of the great injustices happening today happen in our own country.... 1 in 3 girls in Australia are sexually abused - why is this? Why do girls have to cut their arms to relive their emotional pain?... Why do we have so many teenagers in mental institutions in our own nation when they should be enjoying the best years of their lives?? The answers to these questions are not light, they're heavy, and it takes work, energy, finance and great faith to relieve the tragedy human suffering that unfortunately is all around.

Different aspects of the global church have always made the fight against injustice their theme song which has been fantastic.... But secular society has led the charge on many fronts. Even though I have received a lot of flack for it, I wholeheartedly stand behind the work of LIVEAID and Geldof, Bono and U2, actually the global music industry has done a lot for many years to make the average person even aware of what is going on out there, Bill and Melinda Gates, so many government bodies have poured multiplied millions of dollars into aid, but SO much more is needed, many banking sectors have contributed to debt relief which again, is brilliant, but there is SO much more to be done. Look, ANYONE who is championing the cries of the seemingly forgotten, the orphans and widows, and the many women who literally bare the brunt of the outfall of poverty, I thank God for them.... but we as the church have much to do... and not for our sakes or to feed ego's, but to respond to the needs as the hands and feet of Christ. GOD is definitely on the move in our hearts however, and I do believe that one who honours the worship of Christ, is well positioned to hear the voice of God as we heed the call! There is not a church leader I speak to around the world whose heart is not gripped some way or another by the mountain of need we are all faced with. I believe the word of God makes the call to our mission plain and simple - all we need to do is to get busy doing it.

It can seem so daunting that it is easy to just hope someone else will tackle the problems we see, but I certainly am very passionate about each of us doing whatever we can do, however large or small, to tackle the seemingly impossible mountain of dire poverty that is literally reality for too much of humanity. We have said for far too long, 'the problem is too big, Therefore, what can I possibly do that will make a difference?', which then creates a comfortable space between others' reality, and our responsibility. With all my heart, I encourage you to Be a good steward of where you will spend time, energy and finance to help... but don't judge the poor, or the many levels of poor, or how the poor became poor... but IF IT IS IN YOUR POWER TO HELP... THEN HELP. If we all took this on board personally, we would certainly be easing the plight of so many. To even slightly understand the effect of injustice and poverty, you've got to let it touch you, let it wash over you. Almost everybody feels compassion, but it takes personal leadership to move to action - using what's in YOUR hand.

I am NO expert on these matters, but I know through personal experience, that it doesn't take much to start taking steps toward becoming an agent of change... through your own local church and community, through great organisations such as Compassion, Samaritans Purse, World Vision, Opportunity international, the list goes on and on. Compassion and Mercy Ministries being two of our great loves in life, and I guess HopeRwanda, which is a global church mission, is a great example of the power of a whole lot of people working together, in one place, at one time, in unity, to see a Nation propelled into HOPE... To be honest, I am quite ruined for anything else... I believe the responsibility of us as the church, and us as effective individuals, must make sure that the words we sing, and the lives we live are one and the same... that to worship in spirit and in truth is of premium importance in each of our lives. As our hearts are changed in His presence, we MUST respond to the greater call, and as uncomfortable as this may be, to answer the groan of a humanity under sustained pressure.

I actually believe that the power of preaching is diminished without follow through of practical answers, and the challenge for the church is to bring alongside the great message of strength and leadership, true spiritual answers that are tied to practical solutions.

Take Mercy for example, Mercy Ministries is a bridge between society and the church, a way for the broken to find their way through to The Healer.... Compassion International, it's a juncture for these kids, in a village, that may have never heard the GOOD news, but here is the gospel presented in a way where they hear good news, taste good news, and feel good news.... The gospel made flesh.

I think as human beings, there is something in us that wants to remove risk from our lives, even as mature Christians we can be like this... yet Jesus lived a life full of risk, touching need and letting it touch Him, the problems of the world up close to Him...... Yet we can tend to build lives that distances challenge away from us... emotionally, physically. My challenge to us is to pull poverty and social need close to you.

I believe that every leader needs to physically touch problems, not just leading it or funding it, this is a great first step, but you've actually got to touch it and let it break your heart... live a risky life and see where it takes you. Another way to talk about risk is FAITH..... Live a big FAITH life..... I want to be part of the generation that says 'NO MORE. IT ALL CHANGES WITH US'..... c'mon, lets change the world!

OK.... love you and totally believe in you......

And just one extra thought... If you are the one who sits in a position of being treated unfairly through your own hand or the hands of others... in other words, if INJUSTICE has seriously touched your own life..... Be encouraged in the core of your soul from Psalm 18... It is all amazing... but verse 16 says that 'He reached down from on high and took hold of me and drew me out of deep waters.....' God is faithful... YOU CAN COUNT ON THAT ...xx


Darlene Zschech
Christian Today Columnist

Darlene Zschech is a renowned singer and songwriter, also the worship pastor of Hillsong Church in Sydney, Australia. Her best known song "Shout to the Lord" is sung by an estimated 25-30 million churchgoers every week. In 2000, Darlene received a Dove Award nomination for 'Songwriter of the year' and has received the 'International Award' from GMA (Gospel Music Association). Darlene Zschech and her husband Mark are currently serving as executive directors of Mercy Ministries.