This is just too much to handle for my tiny brain. Beth and I attended Catalyst Conference in Atlanta this past week. The theme this year was Uncommon Fellowship. Knowing that we would be challenged to “lean in” to the tension of racial reconciliation, illegal immigrants, refugees, and other differences that exist in our world. The next “lab” would enlighten us on how to LEAD in Jesus name with a heart toward love, grace, and acceptance for everyone. And it happened, over and over again.
Never have I felt like I had a problem with those of a different color than myself. I was recording mixtapes in my bedroom in 1984 of 5 Minutes of Funk by Whodini, In 1987, I saw Run DMC and LL Cool J perform at the Omni in Atlanta with my best friend, David Martin, and his dad, Bob Martin. We even had one of my black friends, Paul Johnson live with us for a while in high school (taught me how to iron correctly)! I played basketball at Gadsden State and had many friends from the team. I would hang out with these guys on Tuscaloosa Avenue in Gadsden in 1990. It was scary and a culture shock, but I was never as conscious and keenly aware of the tension of race as I do today! Something has fundamentally changed and I desperately would like to be an agent of change, not just discussion. I am saddened that a group of Americans feel that they need to remind everyone that they MATTER? I truly believe that ALL LIVES MATTER and as a follower of Christ try to live my life according to Philippians 2:3-5. I think we talk about our differences far too often and too loudly. If we could simply focus on Christ and see everyone as someone that God loves and Jesus died for then there would be no need for “individual movements”. Is that too naive?
A conversation that has shaken me from last week was a round table discussion about race at Catalyst-Atlanta. Scott Sauls was the moderator of the group including Propaganda, Soong-Chan Rah, Mark DeYmaz, and Jenny Yang. So much talk about acceptance and our openness toward people that look different than us. There was a ting of white guilt that I felt was an unspoken undercurrent in the discussion. Was it an actual thing or was I feeling it? What I was listening for and hoping for was an action plan or some action points that have been tried and effectively applied to create uncommon fellowship. I did not hear any actionable “plans or programs”. What I heard was, in my opinion, explanations for the tensions that have been rising to the surface. I went away unsatisfied and truthfully upset because as I’ve said earlier, too much talk and not enough action.
As I drove home, the Holy Spirit began to work with the words that Soong-Chan Rah had said! “There has never been a time when ALL LIVES MATTER has been up for debate, but there have been almost 500 years in our country where black people were subjugated and considered as less than human. This hit me deep in my heart and while I don’t have a clear direction or plan on how I can bring about racial reconciliation, I do believe that I have taken a very important step towards it. UNDERSTANDING! I’m now aware of why Black Lives Matter, matters. I don’t condone the violence, rhetoric, or riots, but I do understand why All Lives Matters is seen to diminish the real cry of the Black Lives Matter movement.
One other statistic used to dig out my undiagnosed bias towards those different than myself. One of the speakers shared that by the year 2042 over half of the people in the United States would be other than white. Something in me bristled at this and BOOM, there it was…..BIAS! My mind immediately considered what a mess we would be in if that were the case. If people that are different than me are the majority then I may lose my comfort zone. I was saddened by the truth of this, but I’m so glad that it happened. This was a revelation from God and I have prayed and asked Him to enable me to be a voice of revelation for so many others like myself that have a heart for EVERYONE but can’t fully understand how to even discuss the issues with any intelligence and perspective without the revelation from the Lord.
Jesus came to put on display God’s love for others. He embraced them, included them, listened to them and taught them. He had fellowship with them despite the accepted standards of the religious leaders of the day. He did not come to exclude Pharisees and Sadducees, He simply came to include everyone else. He had a perspective that we desperately need to share as well. GOD, HOW DO YOU SEE THIS PERSON? His response….I LOVE THEM! Let’s stop worrying about being so politically and theologically correct and simply love everyone!! God is big enough to deal with their issues, just as He did with my own.
Much Love,