“You shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child. If you afflict them in any way and they cry (pray) unto Me, I will surely hear their cry; And My wrath shall burn, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.” Exodus 22:22-24. Wow! God is the Father to the fatherless and a Husband to the husbandless. He is their advocate, their protector, their defense, their shield and security, their aegis. “If they cry (pray) at all to Me (God) I will surely hear.” God stands ready to hear the cries of all who call on Him especially the defenseless widows and orphans who have no male protector to intercede on their behalf. The father had a three-fold job basically to Protect the family from internal and external enemies; To Provide the family with all of its needs physically and spiritually; To Prepare the family to defend itself, to provide for itself, and to go out into the world and Propagate its own family. Ex. 22:24 goes on to say, “His (God’s) wrath will wax hot!” However, before God will intervene, or stand in the gap for them they must cry out to Him for His help, after all He is only a prayer away!

The same is true of the poor or your brother who is in need when you lend them money, you are not to charge them interest. If they cry unto God He will hear them too. In fact Psalm 65:2 says, “O thou who hearest prayer, unto Thee shall all flesh come.” Our God is a prayer hearing, prayer answering God! “All flesh” especially the afflicted or needy and especially the fatherless and the widows. If our human courts and systems fail to administer justice, God doesn’t, neither does His heavenly court. He promises to avenge His creation, especially those who cry to Him day and night. Jer. 49:11 says, “Leave thy fatherless children; I will preserve them alive; and let thy widows trust in Me.” A Father to the fatherless and a Husband to the husbandless, what a promise! But it is conditional to a degree, I knew it, there is always a catch. Right, “If they call – at all on Me!”

What has happened to our ministry to the widows and the fatherless in our churches today? Have we left it up to the system, social services, welfare, big brother and sister? Shame on us! If you read Acts 6 the reason for appointing deacons was to care for the Hellenistic widows in the church, how many of those do you have in your church today? How many of you know who they were and why they needed special attention over the Hebraic widows? It must break our Heavenly Father’s heart to see His widows go home on Sunday and eat dinner alone and you have extra chairs and food, or they have card-board over a broken window, or a door they can’t lock, or a dripping faucet or maybe there are some bulbs they can’t reach. Tea and cookies would be nice or a shopping trip or a card that says you care. How about that boy or girl without a father; now you can go fishing or you can take them fishing but you can’t do both but I know which one will please God the most. Take them to a ball game or to a tea room with a friend, be a father to the fatherless and co-partner with God.

I have met several young adults trying to raise children who have told me they had no male role model in their lives growing up to guide them or look up too. Or even more important to look back to for examples on how to raise their children and they need that guidance in their lives. They are crying out to God and He is looking for some men and women to stand in the gap and make up the hedge, and build a ministry called, ‘Tikkun Olam’ (heal or repair the world) one life at a time. Where is He right now, in His holy habitation, Psalm 68:5, “A Father to the fatherless, and a Judge to the widows, is God in His holy habitation.” First Timothy talks a lot about the ministry of and to widows, in fact v.3 says, “Honor widows that are widows indeed.” However, I think the capstone for this blog is James 1:27 which says it all and I will end with it from two different versions and let you wrestle with God on this matter; “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.” That’s the KJV. Now for the Amplified Version, “External religious worship that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this: to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need, and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world.” Till we meet again,   “…Between The Lines…”

“Abba, Father help us as we co-partner with You in being a surrogate parent to the orphans in need in our churches and a help-meet to the widows too. As we reach out in various ways to ‘Tikkun Olam,’ repair the broken pieces of Your creation, one piece at a time for Your glory and honor. May they receive our help, through Your hands, with Christ’s love. In Yeshua’s name we pray. Amen!”

“The Prayer For The Fatherless & Husbandless” 8/20/12