Rise Up, O Lord!

Scripture: Psalm 17 (NRSV)

Song: O, Freedom! The Golden Gospel Singer

Meditation

“Racism Killed Our Brother,” is how the banner read outside of the church in Marion, Ala., for the funeral of Jimmie Lee Jackson, who was shot dead while trying to protect his mother from police brutality following a peaceful protest for voting rights. It was 57 years ago when those marching for freedom in response to Jackson’s death would be beaten within an inch of their lives as they made their way from Selma to Montgomery and tried to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge to take the fight for voting rights to the state capital. They were tear-gassed, beaten with Billy clubs, whips and tubing wrapped with barbed wire. Inhumane. It was Bloody Sunday, 1965. Black folks and their allies fighting for voting rights. Beaten, battered, whipped. 1965.

O, freedom, O, freedom, O freedom over me…Before I’ll be a slave, I’ll be buried in my grave and go home to my Lord and be free…

They sang and marched and put their bodies on the line. Just as we sing and march and put our bodies on the line over and over again for justice and freedom. But freedom ain’t free and the remix of this fight for voting rights wears on our souls and tatters our spirits. The Psalmist’s earnest cry for God to intervene echoes our own and we plead with God to not only hear our prayers but to answer them. Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry; give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit…

In 2025, Racism Killed Our Brother and Our Sister and Our People is the banner that hangs over churches and in cyberspace translated through time and these 57 years to now read “Black Lives Matter.” We are again fighting for the right to vote and our lives and livelihoods are just as much in danger, although the Billy clubs and whips have been replaced with Jim Crow 2.0, an unjust criminal justice system, inequities in every aspect of our society, and more deferred dreams.

It is no wonder we resonate with this imprecatory prayer pleading with God to deal with our enemies. The weariness of the fight for justice and the righteous indignation of coming up against the evils of racism is enough to send us to our knees and to ask God to swiftly judge and deal with those who are responsible for such pain, suffering, trauma, and death in our lives. Surely, God sees our situation. Surely, God is going to answer and deliver us from this evil. Surely, God hears our cries and will answer.

Rise up, O Lord, confront them, overthrow them!

As a Christian, I am often conflicted when I read these imprecatory psalms. It is a challenge to reconcile my understanding of vengeance belonging to God with the Psalmist’s prayer to deal with his enemies with a sword. Yet, as injustice and evil appear to thrive, it’s also hard not to read Psalm 17 and wonder how the Psalmist’s words could so accurately capture our own heartbreaking pleas in moments when the weight of injustice without accountability seeks to engulf us.

Rise up, O Lord…!

What we learn and are reminded of in the Psalmist’s prayer for deliverance and throughout this Lenten season is that our cries for justice will not go unanswered—the arc of the universe is still bending towards justice. In meaningful ways, small victories and larger ones – God does show us steadfast love. We are, indeed, able to seek refuge from our adversaries when we encourage one another, show up and lift our voices in the fight for justice, share moments of joy that don’t make sense to those watching, and, gather in sacred spaces to love on each other in ways that fill us up just enough for the tough journey ahead.

Reflection Questions:

1. In what ways can we encourage one another in the fight for justice and freedom? How do you stay encouraged?

2. How should we engage with those who seem to be our enemies in ways that move us towards justice and freedom?

3. How do we make sure we do not dehumanize those who are standing in the way of justice the way they’ve dehumanized us?

Call to Action:

The fight for voting rights continues. Call your Congressional representatives in the Senate and the House at (202) 224-3121 and insist that they pass voting rights legislation. You can also email them. Find the contact information for the House of Representatives at house.gov and for the Senate at senate.gov. Get involved where you are. Contact your elected officials on the state and local levels to make sure voter suppression tactics are not being passed where you live.

Song: Rise Up by Andra Day

Prayer

Gracious and Merciful God,

You know the cries of our heart and the pain, heartache, and suffering we have endured. Our communities, our people, have been ravaged by racism for centuries and we’ve had enough. Help us to keep pressing forward and doing the justice work You have entrusted to us. Cover us and fortify us so that we may not only endure these evil times but also be able to make a difference for the good of Your people. We pray, O God, that you will wrap us with your love and let Your grace and mercy flow in the spaces and places we need it the most. Rise up in us, O God. Heal our brokenness. Tether us with tenderness so that the evils of this world will not overtake us or steal our joy or our peace. Keep us, we pray, O God, with Your loving kindness and tender mercies. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

About the Author

Rev. Dr. Copeland-Tune is the Chief Operating Officer of the National Council of Churches, USA.

Stay connected to Leslie:

Twitter & Instagram: @copeytwo

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These Black Lent devotionals were originally curated by IG: goodneighbormovement.

Source: Voter Line by Charly Palmer