I know there is a flood of comments about the mutilated Afghan girl featured in Time magazine. My first response was: Now do you believe me when I talk about the heinous acts toward women worldwide? Now are we getting mad enough, or horrified enough, or outraged enough, so that we might pray and respond? But how?

Jesus said to Peter, one of his own disciples who mutilated a servant during His arrest,  “Those who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 36:52.)

Is that a threat? No, it is a promise. Because right after this statement Jesus asserts His own power and authority saying that He could call down legions of angel armies. Legions. Of angels. Angel armies. Let your mind soak in that. And what was His next action?

Jesus healed the ear. The ear of His enemy.

And so God calls us to this same place of grace. We seek healing for the perpetrators. We call down, with the same authority and confidence, angel armies to help us bring justice to this world.

Our enemy is not the Taliban. It is not even perverted, curse-bearing, female-abusing men. It is the devil who so hates the Image of God that we bear, that he will stop at nothing to distort and destroy it.

Oh Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we cry out to you to in the name of Jesus,
that you would bring set the oppressed free, and break every yoke,
that you would equip and enable us to bring justice in a depraved generation,
that you would bring beauty from ashes, and restoration from devastation.
You are our strength, our hope, our reward, and the only name by which we are saved.
In Your name Jesus, heal us.

Amen