Stronghold for the Oppressed

                                    The LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed,
                                               a stronghold in times of trouble.
                               And those who know your name put their trust in you,
                            for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you.
                                                        [Psalm 9:9-10 NRSV]

     For most of us, when we find ourselves being "oppressed," our first feeling is that we are the only individual who has been "singled out" for such belittlement, rejection, abuse, and true oppression. It is usually not until we have a chance to watch a good friend of ours also become the focus of such attacks that we begin to truly understand that the act of oppression is real, and that it’s not just us who is being attacked.
     If the another individual who is being attacked is different from us, then we ourselves might fall into the trap of joining the attacking force. Or we might just be thankful that they are not attacking us, and so we do nothing. But if we have come to understand that God is the true source of the power to resist such attacks, than we just might even find the strength to speak up in defense of the one being attacked. We might even find the will to help those who are attacking to learn that there is a better way for all of us to treat each other and especially those who are different.
     Yes, I do know about being someone who is different. When I was still in the elementary grades of school, I had a stuttering problem. By the time I was in Jr. High, I had stopped talk all together in public as much as I could. In Sr. High my speech therapist was able to help me overcome this condition. But while in the High School I once saw a kid having a problem with bullies. I just smiled, thanked God that it wasn’t me, and began to walk away. It was then that one of my closest friends reminded me of how I was bullied because of my stuttering. I turned around and told the bully to walk away. Since I was a "good" Tackle on the High School football Team, and four other team mates were with me ... he walked away. The victim thanked me, and ever since then I’ve noticed that maybe God was using me to help those who were be oppressed.

[Bullying Picture from www.SafeNetwork.Org ]