I see people posting variants on an old Eminem quote, and I wanted to say something.
The quote: "I don't care if you are black, white, straight, bisexual, gay, lesbian, short, tall, fat, skinny, rich, or poor; if you're nice to me, I'll be nice to you. Simple as that."
First, I want you to know that I understand where you're coming from. I've posted that same quote plenty of times, and frankly, I now believe I was wrong to do so, even if I did so under the best intentions. Not because the beginning is particularly wrong, but because the end is.
To allow the actions of someone else to fully define your own is seeding to them the authority of your actions. To some, that also means you lose the responsibility, meaning anything you do that's bad is the other person's fault. I grew up being told that my actions, and their consequences, were my responsibility, bar none, so I can understand where people who want to believe that another person's actions define yours are coming from. After all, your actions are a consequence of theirs, are they not?
They're not. The situation which you react to is a consequence of theirs, and as such, the actions available to you are, in fact, limited by their actions. However, your reaction to that situation is still your responsibility. If someone attacks you, you choose how you will respond, whether to defend yourself, retreat, or attack back. Each situation is different, so I'm not going to praise or vilify any of those options, just admit that they're all you've got. You can't make peace when only one party wants it, I get that.
Still, I beg of you, don't let the actions of someone else define who you are and how you will behave. Take responsibility for your own actions regardless of how others treat you, and act in love at all times, rather than just when you can't be justified in acting in hatred. If someone acts nice to you, then it is easy to return the favor. If someone acts harshly to you, then it is much more difficult. Do not destroy yourself because you fail to meet perfection, but at the same time, do not accept anything but the best for your own heart, which means don't give up being nice to others simply because they fail to initiate it. As Jesus said:
Luke 6:31: Do to others as you would have them do to you.
And
Matthew 25:40: The King will reply, "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."
And
Mark 12: 29-31: "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."
I don't care if you are anything, if I do not act in love, I have sinned. I have done wrong. If I must defend myself, if I must attack, I can do so without hatred in my heart. If I can do good for someone else, it is my responsibility to do so, regardless of how they treat me personally \.
To those posting this meme in response to certain events happening all over the world right now in regards to people calling for justice and change, because you feel that you are being attacked by those calls, let me ask you this: What matters more to you, the words of Christ, or protecting the way of life you have grown accustomed to? It is natural to fear change, because change brings the unknown, and we all fear the unknown, but if you have faith in God, trust in Him to protect you as you do everything you can to protect others in His name.
Do what you think is best. Wear a mask. Sign a petition. Write to your governing officials. Demand the money you are owed. Support the groups you feel are being oppressed or unjustly attacked. Do whatever it is you do in love, and when you are angry, “In your anger do not sin." Let no hatred grow out of the fear and anger in your heart, and instead reach out and be unfair on the side of good. Give to those who will not give back. Support those who cannot return the favor. Love those who have not known love in far too long. Or at the very least, stay safe, and let the Shepherd find the lost sheep.
Again, I am not an ordained minister, and I am far from perfect in any one thing, including this. I simply hope that this might inspire some to walk with Christ and do what is right in His eyes, regardless of how others may feel about it. God bless you if you'll let Him, and otherwise have a nice day.
Tuesday, June 9, 2020
Wednesday, June 3, 2020
Become a Nuisance for Justice
For my brothers and sisters in Christ, I'm going to go old-school sermon for a moment. Let's start with scripture:
Luke 18:1-8 New International Version (NIV)
The Parable of the Persistent Widow
1 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’
4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”
6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
And now the message:
We need to become like the widow to the judge. We need to become a nuisance to those in power until our nation has a better system. We need to cry, day after day, for justice. Please, for our brothers and sisters most affected by this, do one or more of these things:
Protest. I cannot, so I understand if you cannot, but also do not attempt to silence those who do so peacefully. They are not criticizing every policeman, they are asking for justice for when the bad ones do bad things.
Donate. Again, I cannot, I have limited funds, so I understand if you cannot. I personally suggest Campaign Zero, but find a reliable charity and give what you can, or at least, give more to your church and beg your church leadership to find a way to use it to help.
Become a Nuisance: contact your legislators, your local government, your state government, your federal government, and tell them that you need them to work together to change things, to prove that they have changed, and to seek justice. A great resource for this is Resistbot, as they will help you reach out to your government officials about this, for free.
I am not an ordained pastor, and I am not part of a non-profit organization, so I am not breaking the law when I say these things. This is not a partisan political issue, this is about making an America that is truly the greatest nation in the world, and that is what I want for my country. We are one nation, under God, and God does not turn away from His children when they are suffering, and neither should we.
Luke 18:1-8 New International Version (NIV)
The Parable of the Persistent Widow
1 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’
4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”
6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
And now the message:
We need to become like the widow to the judge. We need to become a nuisance to those in power until our nation has a better system. We need to cry, day after day, for justice. Please, for our brothers and sisters most affected by this, do one or more of these things:
Protest. I cannot, so I understand if you cannot, but also do not attempt to silence those who do so peacefully. They are not criticizing every policeman, they are asking for justice for when the bad ones do bad things.
Donate. Again, I cannot, I have limited funds, so I understand if you cannot. I personally suggest Campaign Zero, but find a reliable charity and give what you can, or at least, give more to your church and beg your church leadership to find a way to use it to help.
Become a Nuisance: contact your legislators, your local government, your state government, your federal government, and tell them that you need them to work together to change things, to prove that they have changed, and to seek justice. A great resource for this is Resistbot, as they will help you reach out to your government officials about this, for free.
I am not an ordained pastor, and I am not part of a non-profit organization, so I am not breaking the law when I say these things. This is not a partisan political issue, this is about making an America that is truly the greatest nation in the world, and that is what I want for my country. We are one nation, under God, and God does not turn away from His children when they are suffering, and neither should we.
The Ninety-Nine sheep, the One Sheep, and the Shepherd.
I come once again with an old school style sermon. Forgive the really strange language, when I write, I often emulate what I have read, and I've been reading a lot of Christ's teachings, so I will sound a little more old-school that most people are probably comfortable with. Please, I beg you, let it slide, try not to be distracted by that, and look for what you can use from this.
Let's start with the scripture for today:
Matthew 18:12-14 New International Version (NIV)
12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.
Luke 15:3-7 New International Version (NIV)
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
These two versions of the same parable have two very important meanings for us to grasp, as Christians, today. They can be seen in the last verse of each.
In Matthew, Christ tells us that God is not willing to allow anyone to perish. No one should die needlessly. No one should suffer needlessly. For those of us in America that have, for the majority of our lives, been able to trust and rely on the government and other organizations, we are the 99 sheep, or to use a sociological term, we are the social majority. At the very least, we just need to not run off, not stray from where we're meant to be. But the parable doesn't need to be merely about us as the sheep. Remember that we are to follow Christ, not merely know Him. So when one of our flock, a fellow child of God, has been put into a place where they may perish, we, as Christians, can also follow Christ's example and go help. These two paths, for us, are either silent support or activism, and as much as many will disagree with me, I truly believe that as Christians, we should encourage our brothers and sisters to choose which of these two paths they will take. In more modern, easy to grasp speech, we could simply say "step up or step aside." If you feel called to act loudly, great, do so in the love of God and with all success. If you feel called to focus on your own smaller part of your flock, your family, your own mental and physical health, your own business, etc, then do so in the love of God and with all success. The only thing I can tell you is that you should not get in the way, not because you fear violence or consequences, but because your brothers and sisters in Christ have a calling to act in love for others, and you must let them do so, or you fail to love them as you were commanded.
In Luke, Christ tells us that there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to. This is an incredibly important message, because when someone, when one of our fellow children of God or even one of our brothers and sisters in Christ, come to the point that they have sinned, and need correction, our goal should not be to judge, but to work for that joyous repentance. Do not attack your brothers and sister (Christians), or your fellow children of God (all humans), but instead in loving-kindness bring them closer to a knowledge of God's love for all. As I have said many times in the past, educate, do not attack. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and it is not our job to judge that sin. Our task is to show God's love, to Him, to others, and to ourselves. Likewise, if you are the sheep in Luke that has gone astray, if you have allowed sin or hatred to taint your life, seek out God's love. You have made mistakes, yes, but you can be redeemed, and you have not fallen from God's sight. He loves you, and He wants you to be with Him today and forever after.
I must pause here to shed the light of truth on myself. I am far from perfect in either of these actions. I have been a stumbling block for my brethren many times. I have allowed myself to slow the path of the shepherd as He brings His sheep back to safety. I have also taken upon myself the throne of God and attempted to pass judgment, a blasphemy that should not be allowed to continue. I have failed repeatedly in my own call to educate, not attack. I do not write this from a mountaintop of righteousness, but from the gracious embrace of Christ as He carries me back from whence I have strayed. For all those I have wronged, I beg your forgiveness, and as Christ would command, I promise to strive to be better. I cannot promise perfection, but I can promise that the Spirit of the Lord is heavy upon me, and I will rejoice as I learn to purge the underlying hatred or ignorance I may still have. I say this so you do not look to me as an example of perfection, but as an example of brokenness that Christ may still use despite my failings, and so that you do not see any such brokenness in yourself as something that disqualifies you from His love or from serving Him and His children in that love.
To conclude with a summary: In Matthew we learn to serve our fellow children of God and our fellow believers though either following Christ directly and actively helping, or by following Christ's command to stay the course where we are, and which path each one of us takes should be seen as an aspect of our personal relationship with Christ. Commend those who's path is to be active and who live it out, but do not condemn those who's path is to take care of other things so long as they do not become a stumbling block. Even then, and in all things, we learn in Luke that it is much better to seek the repentance and joy of a fellow child of God, not to rush to judgment or condemn them for actions we may not fully understand. Seek to address problems through loving-kindness, striving for growth and the joy that comes with being carried back into God's glorious light and love, do not take upon yourselves the throne of God and judge others.
Again, I am not an ordained minister, just a fellow Christian and someone who wants to use God's Word to help heal our nation and our world. I hope that this brings you courage, joy, wisdom, and peace in equal measure. God bless you if you'll let Him, and otherwise have a great day.
Let's start with the scripture for today:
Matthew 18:12-14 New International Version (NIV)
12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.
Luke 15:3-7 New International Version (NIV)
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
These two versions of the same parable have two very important meanings for us to grasp, as Christians, today. They can be seen in the last verse of each.
In Matthew, Christ tells us that God is not willing to allow anyone to perish. No one should die needlessly. No one should suffer needlessly. For those of us in America that have, for the majority of our lives, been able to trust and rely on the government and other organizations, we are the 99 sheep, or to use a sociological term, we are the social majority. At the very least, we just need to not run off, not stray from where we're meant to be. But the parable doesn't need to be merely about us as the sheep. Remember that we are to follow Christ, not merely know Him. So when one of our flock, a fellow child of God, has been put into a place where they may perish, we, as Christians, can also follow Christ's example and go help. These two paths, for us, are either silent support or activism, and as much as many will disagree with me, I truly believe that as Christians, we should encourage our brothers and sisters to choose which of these two paths they will take. In more modern, easy to grasp speech, we could simply say "step up or step aside." If you feel called to act loudly, great, do so in the love of God and with all success. If you feel called to focus on your own smaller part of your flock, your family, your own mental and physical health, your own business, etc, then do so in the love of God and with all success. The only thing I can tell you is that you should not get in the way, not because you fear violence or consequences, but because your brothers and sisters in Christ have a calling to act in love for others, and you must let them do so, or you fail to love them as you were commanded.
In Luke, Christ tells us that there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to. This is an incredibly important message, because when someone, when one of our fellow children of God or even one of our brothers and sisters in Christ, come to the point that they have sinned, and need correction, our goal should not be to judge, but to work for that joyous repentance. Do not attack your brothers and sister (Christians), or your fellow children of God (all humans), but instead in loving-kindness bring them closer to a knowledge of God's love for all. As I have said many times in the past, educate, do not attack. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and it is not our job to judge that sin. Our task is to show God's love, to Him, to others, and to ourselves. Likewise, if you are the sheep in Luke that has gone astray, if you have allowed sin or hatred to taint your life, seek out God's love. You have made mistakes, yes, but you can be redeemed, and you have not fallen from God's sight. He loves you, and He wants you to be with Him today and forever after.
I must pause here to shed the light of truth on myself. I am far from perfect in either of these actions. I have been a stumbling block for my brethren many times. I have allowed myself to slow the path of the shepherd as He brings His sheep back to safety. I have also taken upon myself the throne of God and attempted to pass judgment, a blasphemy that should not be allowed to continue. I have failed repeatedly in my own call to educate, not attack. I do not write this from a mountaintop of righteousness, but from the gracious embrace of Christ as He carries me back from whence I have strayed. For all those I have wronged, I beg your forgiveness, and as Christ would command, I promise to strive to be better. I cannot promise perfection, but I can promise that the Spirit of the Lord is heavy upon me, and I will rejoice as I learn to purge the underlying hatred or ignorance I may still have. I say this so you do not look to me as an example of perfection, but as an example of brokenness that Christ may still use despite my failings, and so that you do not see any such brokenness in yourself as something that disqualifies you from His love or from serving Him and His children in that love.
To conclude with a summary: In Matthew we learn to serve our fellow children of God and our fellow believers though either following Christ directly and actively helping, or by following Christ's command to stay the course where we are, and which path each one of us takes should be seen as an aspect of our personal relationship with Christ. Commend those who's path is to be active and who live it out, but do not condemn those who's path is to take care of other things so long as they do not become a stumbling block. Even then, and in all things, we learn in Luke that it is much better to seek the repentance and joy of a fellow child of God, not to rush to judgment or condemn them for actions we may not fully understand. Seek to address problems through loving-kindness, striving for growth and the joy that comes with being carried back into God's glorious light and love, do not take upon yourselves the throne of God and judge others.
Again, I am not an ordained minister, just a fellow Christian and someone who wants to use God's Word to help heal our nation and our world. I hope that this brings you courage, joy, wisdom, and peace in equal measure. God bless you if you'll let Him, and otherwise have a great day.
A Nation of Riots
We are a nation of riots. Before we became a nation, we rioted against the British Crown. When we became a nation, we enshrined the rights necessary for riots, the right to gather and the right to bear arms, as part of the foundations of this nation. When we finally understood, as a nation, that we must choose between owning others and liberty, we fought, and decided through violence who was right. Those on the losing side with honor surrendered, and we became whole once again. When we, as a nation, needed to learn that simply promising rights without enforcing them would not be enough, we rioted. Over and over and over. When we, as a nation, were done with the war, we rioted. When we, as a nation, wanted freedoms not yet given to all of us, we rioted.
Riots are like wars in this: no patriot looks forward to them, nor condones them blindly, but acknowledges their inevitability and their necessity. I do not condone violence, but to say that riots are not in the marrow of this nation, making the lifeblood of freedom we have come to enjoy, is a lie. We must protect our rights, the rights of all Americans, and that means we must protect the property of our government, our business owners, our neighbors, and our families, but that does not mean we destroy all of the Americans calling for change.
I do not condone the violence, I do not concede that it is necessary, but I stand with the American patriots on both sides, such as Chief of Police David Roddy of Chattanooga, such as Sheriff Chris Swanson of Genesee County in Michigan, such as the rapper and community leader Killer Mike of Atlanta, such as reporter Omar Jimenez, who all agree on one thing: our system needs to change. And every other time in our history that our system needed to change, we, as a nation, rioted.
We can do better than to simply send the military in and quell the riots. We can do better than to allow the federal government to control units that have only been trained for war. We can do better than to sacrifice those soldiers, airmen, sailors, and marines, as well as civilians, to quell our fear. Fear is good. Fear is healthy. We must be afraid, because there is something to fear: our nation failing to be the best it can be. If it took a thousand riots to bring us to this fear, then so be it.
Authorities: Arrest those observed committing crimes, regardless of their relation to a protest. We have hundreds if not thousands of videos showing their faces, their locations, and their crimes. If you see your comrades violate the law, become emotionally compromised, or harm people out of fear, hold them accountable. They are not evil, but they may need correction.
Protesters: the time to be peaceful to those who infiltrate your movements and push for violence is over. Stop them, restrain them, and take them to be arrested. Turn them over to the police, give a statement, file a report, and let the authorities know that if some people want to turn this into a two-sided conflict, the protests are not the other side.
Those at home: make your voices heard. Contact your lawmakers, your authorities, your President, and let them know that you want the riots to end without trampling on the rights of law-abiding Americans. Write them online, send them letters, call their offices. Become a nuisance until justice has come.
We are all Americans. We are all America. And we can stand together.
Riots are like wars in this: no patriot looks forward to them, nor condones them blindly, but acknowledges their inevitability and their necessity. I do not condone violence, but to say that riots are not in the marrow of this nation, making the lifeblood of freedom we have come to enjoy, is a lie. We must protect our rights, the rights of all Americans, and that means we must protect the property of our government, our business owners, our neighbors, and our families, but that does not mean we destroy all of the Americans calling for change.
I do not condone the violence, I do not concede that it is necessary, but I stand with the American patriots on both sides, such as Chief of Police David Roddy of Chattanooga, such as Sheriff Chris Swanson of Genesee County in Michigan, such as the rapper and community leader Killer Mike of Atlanta, such as reporter Omar Jimenez, who all agree on one thing: our system needs to change. And every other time in our history that our system needed to change, we, as a nation, rioted.
We can do better than to simply send the military in and quell the riots. We can do better than to allow the federal government to control units that have only been trained for war. We can do better than to sacrifice those soldiers, airmen, sailors, and marines, as well as civilians, to quell our fear. Fear is good. Fear is healthy. We must be afraid, because there is something to fear: our nation failing to be the best it can be. If it took a thousand riots to bring us to this fear, then so be it.
Authorities: Arrest those observed committing crimes, regardless of their relation to a protest. We have hundreds if not thousands of videos showing their faces, their locations, and their crimes. If you see your comrades violate the law, become emotionally compromised, or harm people out of fear, hold them accountable. They are not evil, but they may need correction.
Protesters: the time to be peaceful to those who infiltrate your movements and push for violence is over. Stop them, restrain them, and take them to be arrested. Turn them over to the police, give a statement, file a report, and let the authorities know that if some people want to turn this into a two-sided conflict, the protests are not the other side.
Those at home: make your voices heard. Contact your lawmakers, your authorities, your President, and let them know that you want the riots to end without trampling on the rights of law-abiding Americans. Write them online, send them letters, call their offices. Become a nuisance until justice has come.
We are all Americans. We are all America. And we can stand together.
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