Old Testament
Job 29:12-16
12 because I delivered the poor who cried, and the fatherless also, who had no one to help him,
13 the blessing of him who was ready to perish came on me, and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy.
14 I put on righteousness, and it clothed me. My justice was as a robe and a diadem.
15 I was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame.
16 I was a father to the needy. I researched the cause of him whom I didn’t know.
New Testament
Philippians 2:3-4
3 doing nothing through rivalry or through conceit, but in humility, each counting others better than himself;
4 each of you not just looking to his own things, but each of you also to the things of others.
Job remembers a season when his life was marked by justice that could be felt. He rescued the poor who cried for help, the fatherless who had none. He was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame. He searched out the cause he did not know. It is a portrait of public responsibility as attentive solidarity.
Philippians refuses a rival spirit: do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. That is not weakness. It is Christlike strength.
Energy policy can feel distant to an ordinary believer, but its effects are not distant. Decisions about infrastructure, pricing, insulation, and transition land on bodies and households. Some will adapt easily; others will be left exposed. In the household of God, we do not warm our own rooms and leave next door to freeze.
Lord, give us leaders who can be eyes and feet for neighbours they may never meet. Give humility in decision-making, and courage to protect the vulnerable. Keep us from the cynicism that only criticises and the naïvety that refuses trade-offs. Teach your Church to pray for just governance with a quiet, steadfast hope.