Kids & Parenting

The Colour Yellow Part 3

by Janice S Ramkissoon 
02/02/18
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Looking back on my journey, I can now say with confidence that, yellow is my favourite colour. I like it because it is bright and cheerful and is a constant reminder of the joy within me. Once ignited, it drives away the clouds when I’m faced with overwhelming situations I cannot control.

The colour yellow, reminds me of happy times which acts as a medicine keeping the smile on my face that is so easily drained from my features by the ongoing sorrowful times and the injustices surrounding me. Yes, I need me some yellow in my world so I do not cave under the weight of injustice which is so prevalent (not just out in the wider world but right here in my little world) while good men are held hostage by fear which keeps their hands tied and the mouths silent. 

Therefore, the yellow in my world also represents a cry for help—a reminder that we cannot simply talk about the problem and pray about the situations while the ambulances are going to and fro taking my beloved brothers and sisters to the hospital or to their graves without living victorious lives. Many of those medical issues resulted from a deficiency in our childhood which led to major complications in adulthood.

Without a clear understanding of what’s truly happening, some people try to ease the pain or fill the gap with various substances and through over indulgences end up in very dark places, including suicide attempts. Sometimes substance abuses are exchanged for toxic relationships and the result is the same. Unfortunately, I’ve lost a few people to suicide and watched many others walk closely down that road. Nevertheless, the ones who found new hope and chose life over death, gives me hope today to speak out on behalf of those who are silently crying out, “Help me!”

So whenever an Ambulance passes me by or I hear the siren of an ambulance, I’m reminded that yellow in my world doesn’t just ignite the joy as I reminisce on happy times but it is also a cry for help. It is a cry that went unheard for too long. It is the cry of one who has become accustomed to pain that it no longer hurts because of the numbness. It is a cry for help, from the years of trying to get somebody’s attention while everyone seemed to be so busy that they gave up trying to reach out.

It is a cry for help for those who have learned that while everyone is taking care of other ‘important’ business, they have to wait indefinitely, to be heard. So they wait, hoping that tomorrow will be their turn. Years and years pass by with no one acknowledging their pain and then they learn the hard truth that they aren’t even on the list of priorities. They stop believing the lie that you love them. They feel unimportant, rejected, unloved and nothing can repair their broken hearts, except the undiluted truth of the gospel—the love of God which they have learned to reject because His agents of change have been too busy investing in ‘things’ instead of people.

Today, I cry out to you fellow believers of the gospel, you whom God has called out from among them, urging you to stop for a moment and listen to the voice of the hurting, hearing their heart’s cry above the angry tone in their voices and respond in love with truth and grace. "Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine" (2 Tim 4:2).

Please join me in acknowledging that we are each agents of change. Acknowledge the call to the hurting among you and join me in saying:

“Here I am Lord, use me!”

“Here I am Lord, speak through me. Accept my offering of willingness to be used. Anoint my voice to speak as an oracle for You”:

Encouraging those who dare to confront their fears and step out by faith to:

1. Pray consistently for guidance for leaders;


2. Pray for those who (having stepped out by faith) are discouraged by lack of help from their peers in ministry or rejection from those they are called to serve;


3. Actively make the gospel relevant to this generation of hurting souls seeking out the needs within your fellowships and meet those needs by marrying faith and deeds (James 2:14-25; Psalm 68:5-6);


4. Provide a forum that aims to meet those needs so that we aren't providing a service we think others need while missing what they actually need. This is another form of effective evangelism as commanded in Matthew 28:19-20. Our heavenly father is glorified when we show that we are indeed His disciples (John 15, John 13:35 & Matthew 25:40);


5. Sharing with and seeking guidance from effective leaders within our places of fellowship; encouraging them to embrace this as part of the overall evangelistic strategy for mission. 

Will you be part of the solution in a practical way?

1. Learning (from the young men and women in your world) where the real issues are and what kind of practical help they need;


2. Slowly putting the pieces together as God releases parts of the puzzle for you on your journey as you gain better understanding;


3. Being still, while God empowers you through His Holy Word (the Bible) and listening to His voice as He speaks softly and tenderly to you, eliminating all the other noises around you;


4. Utilising resources from charities and other organisations fighting such injustice; working alongside them to bring about emotional healing and practical support on the journey.

That’s the journey I had to take to get here. Journeying through my own process of grieving and healing, from parental neglect, I continue to search the scriptures for answers. What I found out on that journey is that too many places of fellowships are neglecting a major part of the mission field. By not embracing the Scriptures, in context and in fullness, we are missing many opportunities to express the love of God in practical ways. Here are some Scriptures to get you excited about supporting this neglected form of evangelism:

1. Faith and Deeds (James 2:14-25)


2. God sets the lonely in families (Psalm 68:5-6, 27:10)


3. Justice (James 1:27, Deuteronomy 10:18 & 14:29)


4. Romans 10:8; 2 Timothy 4:2

How you arrive at the place where God desires for you to be may be different from how I got to this point on my journey. However, one thing will never change for either of us and that is spending time in the Word. To know God’s will for us, in truly fulfilling the call, is to spend time in His Word. As we learn more about God’s will for our lives, it becomes easier getting our heartbeat in sync with His.

Seek Him first and He will direct your path.

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you"

(Matthew 6:33, KJV).