Dear Friends
This is a powerful message on the racial divide written by a contributor to a daily devotional I receive from former player and major league manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates Clint Hurdle. I hope you will take the time to read it.
Yours in faith and friendship
Tom
See article below
A Question We MUST Answer
June 17
This has been an
emotional and difficult week for most Americans. I am old enough to remember a
similar period of turmoil in the late ’60’s. It is truly heartbreaking that
fifty years later we are still plowing the same fields of prejudice and
racism.
President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law,
with Martin Luther King, Jr., looking on. Johnson had a quote that we hoped
would be prophetic. “At times history and fate meet at
a single time in a single place to shape a turning point
in man’s unending search for freedom.”
Maybe there is
still a chance for history and fate to join with the faith of millions of
followers of Jesus to shape a turning point in our culture. Maybe the
unnecessary deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd will
galvanize our collective hearts in a way that can be transformative. Hear out
pleas Lord that you will redeem these horrible deaths to bring you Glory and
your people together.
In my lifetime I
have never seen such such intense introspection among the white community about
racism. It feels like God has shown us in this time of isolation, fear, and
tragic news how desperately we need to unify in the power of the Spirit. I see
more of my white brothers and sisters having substantive conversations without
the customary push back and defensiveness. I believe we have a window where God
can move in the hearts of millions of His children to make this a moment of
change.
But you can rest
assured the enemy will do everything in his power to thwart the moving of God’s
Spirit. Satan will distract us with issues that keep us from healing. He will
point out the bad behavior of a few so we won’t explore the pain of millions.
It is time to move past rationalizations and excuses. It is time to hear the
stories of black brothers and sisters without trying to offer our “take”. It is
time to listen. It is time to try and feel the pain of rejection our black
friends have experienced for no reason other than skin color. It is time to
understand why the #black lives matter movement does not mean that only black
lives matter. That was never the point. This explanation from Doug Williford
puts a helpful context on the phrase.
“If my spouse comes to me in obvious pain and asks “Do you love me?”, an
answer of “I love everyone” would be truthful, but also hurtful and cruel in
the moment. If a co-worker comes to me upset and says “My father just died,” a
response of “Everyone’s parents die,” would be truthful, but hurtful and cruel
in the moment. So when a friend speaks up in a time of obvious pain and hurt
and says “Black lives matter,” a response of “All lives matter,” is truthful.
But it’s hurtful and cruel in the moment.”
I have also had to
wrestle with what white privilege means. As a child of Appalachia it was hard
for me to comprehend what “privilege” I had. I was the first Burchett male to
graduate from high school for heavens sake. But the phrase doesn’t mean that a
white hillbilly like me won’t have challenges. It simply means I start out with
an inherent advantage. It is not a statement of condemnation toward whites. It
is just a societal fact.
So let’s affirm to our black brothers and sisters that black lives definitely matter. Let’s acknowledge there is a cultural advantage to being white. Let’s call racism what it is and by
it’s name. Sin.
Let’s stop being silent out of fear that we might offend someone. Let’s stand
boldly with our black brothers and sisters.
The Apostle John
has a hard truth for followers of Jesus.
If someone says, “I
love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t
love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? And he has
given us this command: Those who love God must also love their fellow
believers. 1 John 4:20-21
I don’t see a
single qualifier about what that believer looks like or acts like.
We are commanded by
Jesus to love one another.
This is my
commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. John 15:12
Maybe it is time we
understood that is not a helpful suggestion or really cool goal. That is a
commandment. And yes, that command is impossible apart from focusing on Jesus.
It means jumping headfirst into the fountain of grace. Grace that forgave me
and you when we deserved anything but that free gift.
My fear is that the
white community will determine to make a difference and then simply let that
conviction slip away when life returns to some semblance of normalcy. I see it
all the time. Someone dies and we determine to live more fully. That lasts a
few days. Our black brothers and sisters need us to dig in for the long haul.
We need to produce action and not hot air. Again John hits with a hard truth.
Truth is revealed by our actions.
Dear children,
let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our
actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be
confident when we stand before God. 1 John 3:18-19
The question will
not be were you challenged? The question will be were you changed? We are the
hands and feet of Jesus and we have a cultural moment to make a difference.
Paul has the game plan.
“Do not be overcome
by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:21
So how will you answer the question? Merely challenged or changed in the
power of His grace? Make a difference today,
Love Clint
2 Corinthians 4:17-18
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