By Rev. Dr. Angelique Walker-Smith
Psalm 123:1: LORD, I look up to you, up to heaven, where you rule.
Recently, I boarded a small elevator and was delighted to join a young mother with her baby in a stroller. Soon, a gentleman joined us. During the short ride, the baby took the pacifier from her mouth, looked into the eyes of each of us, and pointed her finger upwards for us to look up. Her mother said she always does that! I found this to be a mystical moment led by the baby.
While cherishing the encounter, I suddenly remembered there would be multiple National Guard personnel, police, and security to greet me at the top of my long escalator ride. As I walked in their presence, I found encouragement from the sacred moment of the baby leading us. This memory was furthered when my mind and heart remembered one of my favorite groups, Earth, Wind, and Fire, and their song, “Keep Your Head to the Sky.”
Keep your head to the sky…
You gave me the will to be free, Purpose to live is reality…
Hey, and I found myself never alone, cause you need faith to understand…
In this season of so much uncertainty in our lives, I also think about the lives of farmers, both locally and globally, living with the uncertainty of being able to feed us, and of the profound suffering of vulnerable populations and of food systems under threat of funding cuts, climate change, and conflicts.
Giving thanks can be hard as we approach this holiday season. With the increased presence of the military and security personnel locally, and with at least forty-five conflicts and wars globally, we have reason to be troubled. Still, we are encouraged to look up and rise above the pain and evils of this world.
The baby in the elevator is on her mission to remind us to do this, as is the song. The Christ child, whom we anticipate again in the season of Advent 2025, starting November 30th, also reminds us to look up. The Bible tells us that after the Christ child was born, the Holy Family escaped to the African country of Egypt for refuge from King Herod, who sought to have the child killed.
Sadly, this is the story today for so many children who suffer at the hands of violent governments and movements. Our recent Pan Women of Faith/Pan African Women’s Ecumenical Empowerment Network conference reminded us that children and youth, like Pan African girls, still have the courage to be resilient and truthtellers, like in the Bible and the baby in the elevator.
Advocacy with and for babies, children, mothers, fathers, and families is one way we accept and renew our call to be divinely human through the lens of faith. May you always be reminded by the child inside you to look up and walk faithfully, especially as we approach this holiday season, which includes Thanksgiving and the beginning of Advent. Bread for the World hopes that our new Advent devotional, Advent People in Uncertain Times: A Bread for the World Devotional, will be a source to accompany you during these uncertain times.
Angelique Walker-Smith is a senior associate for Pan African and Orthodox Church engagement at Bread for the World.
