16/09/2026
“How long, LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen?” Habakkuk 1:2
There are moments when we do not know what else to say except: “How long, Lord?”
Habakkuk looked at his society and saw violence, injustice and people suffering. He cried out to God because what he was seeing did not make sense to him.
And perhaps today, many of us understand that cry.
We look at our country. We look at our communities. We hear stories of people being killed. We hear the cries of families searching for loved ones. We see the pain caused by violence against women and children. And sometimes, like Habakkuk, we ask:
“Lord, how long?”
The recent killings of women in and around Kempton Park have once again confronted our nation with the reality of violence. SAPS has reported multiple bodies discovered in the area and has intensified investigations, while stressing that it is still establishing whether the cases are connected. (Government of South Africa)
Behind every statistic is a person. Behind every headline is a mother, daughter, sister, friend or loved one. Behind every death is a family asking questions that may never have easy answers.
And so the Church must not become numb. And perhaps God’s invitation to us is not simply to wait for an answer, but to become part of the answer—to become people who protect, people who speak, people who intervene, people who seek justice, and people who refuse to remain silent when another human being is being harmed.
Lord, hear our cry.
Lord, see our pain.
Lord, defend the vulnerable.
Lord, comfort the grieving.
Lord, expose violence.
Lord, bring justice.
And Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Amen
