“Let us remember that the work of justice is a long-suffering narrative- both for the individuals who are today enduring the brunt of the world’s worst injustices and for people of faith committed to moving the needle.”

Martin Luther King, Jr. rightfully noted, “Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable… Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering and struggle; [it requires] the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.” And he would know.

As I look at my own life, saturated by expectations of expediency, ease, and self-actualization, I tremble at Dr. King’s words because it means that the pursuit of justice will cost something significant, and that it will not be easy. As the idealism fades, do I have what it takes to stay with it? As the world moves on to other flashy invitations, do we as Christians have the wherewithal to stick with the causes we said we cared about five years ago? Do we have the will to sustain slowly by slowly commitments into the next five years?”

-Jena Lee Nardella, Blood:Water co-founder and author of “One Thousand Wells”