I recently posted on Facebook what I thought to be a harmless post regarding race relations. The author wrote an educated prose on his feelings of equality, compromise and hope for the future. It was met with accusations of being Trump propaganda (to which Trump was never mentioned), bigotry, and unfair to black Americans. It was written by ... a black American. I was dumbfounded.
I'm not disturbed by demonstrations against the government. I'm not disturbed by judgments on Presidents. I'm not disturbed by heated debates on controversial topics. However, I am disturbed by the ones who are making them that call themselves Christians.
Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. 1 Peter 3:11I get it. We want our voices to be heard. Heck, I'm writing a blog exposing my worldview. But what disturbs me the most is all the "crazy" that has become blasted on the media, Facebook, and Twitter. Those who would call themselves "Christian" are not keeping themselves away from worldly desires. Ok, let's make this simple. What are today's "worldly desires"?
- the temptation to engage in the crazy and raise your voice higher than the guy next to you
- the militant attitude that opposes your thinking
- the language that praises what God has done for you one second and damns your neighbor for putting up a sign discrediting your opinion the next
- the rants you post about the ills of your country while never doing a thing to change it
- the inequality you claim does/does not exist without doing your part to better the lives of those around you
And perhaps the very fact that I'm ranting now makes my own point.
I have no answer. I do know that I can not engage the world with the tactics of the world. I'm speaking as a Christian. I'm not speaking as a church-goer. I'm not speaking as a Bible reader. I'm not speaking as a Republican. I'm not speaking as an American. I'm speaking as someone whose life has been radically changed by the person of Jesus Christ. I'm speaking as someone who has been transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit. I'm speaking as someone who wants to live as light in the middle of the dark. Playing by the same rules isn't going to cut it. There's got to be a different way of dealing with the crazy to effect real change.
During WWII, Corrie Tin Boon voluntarily hid Jews in her home risking imprisonment and death. She didn't follow the rules set out by the Nazi government to turn in those bearing the Jewish Star of David. She showed grace and equality to humans she recognized to be made in the image of the God she followed. Her religion was not a separater. Her relationship with God was her motivator. The advice of her Mother could be seen in the values Corrie lived out:
“Happiness isn’t something that depends on our surroundings, Corrie. It’s something we make inside ourselves.”
In 1975, frustrated by the academic apathy of her Garfield Park school district in Chicago, Marva Delores Collins chose to make a difference. She fought back by establishing a college preparatory school and pouring her life DNA into school children who would upset a stagnant system. She didn't follow the rules of "the system" that accepted lower than average test scores and the inevitability of a cycle of poverty. She taught her kids that character counted, excellence is a habit and it's not about black and white but about being yourself.
I don't believe I am alone in my assessment of what we - Christians - have become. There are so few wearing the sign of the fish that are agents of positive change in an increasingly negative world stage. The best way to quiet a large crowd is by a whisper. I do believe there is power in one making a difference. I do believe we can affect change in respectful, non-doormat kinds of ways that will attract dialogue and not repel bystanders. Below, Francis Chan sums up what is in my heart.
“The light of the American church is flickering and nearly extinguished, having largely sold out to the kingdoms and values of this world. Shouldn’t there be a huge difference between the person who has the Spirit of God living inside of him or her and the person who does not?”
Where, O People of God, is our flicker?
Where, O People of God, are the ones willing to live as foreigners and fight with weapons different from the world?
Where, O People of God, are the ones that will combat the crazy?
Asking the same questions of myself,
Christina
I don't believe I am alone in my assessment of what we - Christians - have become. There are so few wearing the sign of the fish that are agents of positive change in an increasingly negative world stage. The best way to quiet a large crowd is by a whisper. I do believe there is power in one making a difference. I do believe we can affect change in respectful, non-doormat kinds of ways that will attract dialogue and not repel bystanders. Below, Francis Chan sums up what is in my heart.
“The light of the American church is flickering and nearly extinguished, having largely sold out to the kingdoms and values of this world. Shouldn’t there be a huge difference between the person who has the Spirit of God living inside of him or her and the person who does not?”
Where, O People of God, is our flicker?
Where, O People of God, are the ones willing to live as foreigners and fight with weapons different from the world?
Where, O People of God, are the ones that will combat the crazy?
Asking the same questions of myself,
Christina
