SEEING THE EXTRAORDINARY

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  • Discouraged – Devotion 50

    Will things ever go right?  Will it get better?  Does this end?  Why doesn’t it just work out?  We can find ourselves spiraling when we are discouraged.  When we have given it our best and it still is a failure, we wonder why we should even bother.  When we have tried to eat healthy and don’t lose the weight we thought, it can bring us down.  When we make a lifestyle change to improve our overall health but find we are having such a difficult time adapting, the old lifestyle seems to call our name.  When we are striving to be loving and feel attacked at every turn, it can feel defeating.  When we become discouraged, even when doing good, we feel like just giving up.  But that is the time to continue, to press forward, to keep moving on.

    Changing anything in life is really difficult.  Leaving behind an old lifestyle is uncomfortable.  Eating healthier and exercising is okay at first but takes a lot of effort to continue.  Loving others as Jesus taught is fine when we are around people we already love or tolerate, but much more difficult when faced with adversity on a regular basis.

    The more we continue, the stronger we become.  We are building a strong base.  We are gaining endurance and finding consistency.  We are learning what it takes to not give in or give up.  We are being prepared to live the life we were created to live.  When I think of this, I think of Romans 5.  It is an easier scripture to read than it is to put into practice.  But for me, it describes an important building process.  It helps me to understand that there is something more.  I am encouraged that I am being shaped and formed to be more like Christ.  This adversity is a training ground.  When I continue on, I am building up.  The scripture tells us that difficulties produce endurance. This is the keep on keeping on persistence that we need.  This persistence is producing character in us.  And that character is giving us hope.  It is not an easy path, but one worth taking.  God is creating something special in us.  We are being made for so much more.

    So if you find yourself discouraged this morning, look up.  Continue to do the right thing.  Continue to move forward in God’s word.  Keep on keeping on.  There is a plan at work and it is good.

    Focus Scripture:

    Romans 5:3-5

    3 And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.

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    Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

  • Truly Set Free

    Worthless, beat down, invaluable, helpless…he had to feel this way.  He had no choice but to feel this way.  He was paralyzed so he was at the mercy of others, always.  He could not get out of his bed so he had nothing he could contribute, or at least that is the way it seemed.  He existed and not much else could be said – at least from the outside.  But oh he still had personality and character.  He was still who he was created to be.  He had value, but it was difficult for him to see because he was confined to a bed unable to care for himself.  He depended on others for everything.

    But someone cared about him, he was a friend.  He meant something to someone.  He was mother’s son.  He had a father.  He could have been a brother or a nephew.  He was someone’s grandchild.  He was an important person.  He was valued.  There were others that knew him for the guy that he really was.  They heard his story.  They saw his pain.  They got that there was so much more to him than this bed.  This bed was not him.  He was so much more.  He had a name.  He had a life.  He had joys and hopes, dreams and aspirations.  They could look into his eyes and see the desperation.  He didn’t want to be in this place.  He simply wanted to be loved.

    And there were people who saw him.  They wanted to do anything they could to help, no matter the cost.  They loved him.  They believed in him.  And they had experienced someone that would love him just as much as they did.  So they did something which is rarely done…they move him.  Yes – they make him mobile.  It is a difficult task because he can’t help.  He is completely dependent on their efforts.  He can only go where they carry him.  He doesn’t get out or go places, it is too much work for people.  But today, they carry him.  He has somewhere to go.

    Matthew 9:2-8

    2 And just then some people were carrying a paralyzed man lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” 3 Then some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming.” 4 But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your hearts? 5 For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Stand up and walk’? 6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic—“Stand up, take your bed and go to your home.” 7 And he stood up and went to his home. 8 When the crowds saw it, they were filled with awe, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to human beings.

    When we read this story, we read the lesson.  There is a lesson about faith.  There is a lesson about who Jesus is.  We could leave it at that.  But I don’t think that is the whole story.  This man, he is not an object lesson, he is a real person.  He is not to be used to make a point, but rather a person to be seen and heard.  He is someone who has suffered and has struggled.  He has led a real life that has been challenging.  His life has been confined to a bed.  Jesus sees him.  Jesus sees him as one of his own.  He calls him his child.  He also sees the hearts of those with him.  They don’t need to say a word.  He gets it.  They have selflessly given of themselves so that this man can have a new life.  They want the best for him.  He isn’t an object, he is God’s beloved.  He is a child of God, no less precious than anyone else.

    Jesus takes care of the man.  He offers forgiveness.  This man must have been weighed down by the things in his life.  Jesus would have noticed more than a paralyzed person.  He would have seen the heart of the man.  He would know what was hurting him.  He would understand that there is so much more going on than his outward situation.  He saw the man’s heart.  And he began healing him on the inside.  That probably isn’t what the friends had in mind.  This wasn’t what the man was expecting, I am sure.  Those in the room were dumbfounded.  Why would this be the answer?  But the man…no one asks him how he feels about all of this.  No one seeks to know how he is –  in the middle of all of this.  They simply begin to make assumptions and criticize.  They want to trap Jesus instead of realizing what has been done for him.

    He has been forgiven, set free.  He has been released from his past.  The heavy weights that have held him down are no longer a factor.  Jesus has done something for him that no doctor could ever do.  He has provided him with new life.  Even if he is still in the bed, he is not consumed by the worry of his past.  He has been set free.  This is an incredible gift.  But instead of celebrating, the religious in the room began to criticize.  Who does Jesus think he is?  What does think he is doing?  Who gave him the right to forgive sins?  And is this guy even worthy?  He isn’t a religious person and he can’t even go to worship.  Is this even happening?

    Just like Jesus sees the heart of the man and the heart of his friends, he also sees the heart of the religious.  And their heart is thinking evil.  Their heart is stained.  They have no clue that their seemingly religious heart is damaged.  They are too busy pointing out the stains of someone else to realize they are covered.  They are too consumed with who is worthy to realize that they need his love more than anyone.  They haven’t looked up from their rule book to see a man, a human, one of God’s children lying on a bed in front of them.  They have missed the person to make a point.  There is a person.  There is a life.  But Jesus sees.  He knows their hearts.  And he understands who truly seeks him.  He gets what is going on.  And he calls them out.  But he doesn’t forget the man.

    After he has taken care of the most important part – the weight of his past – he then gives him the freedom to move, to go on his own.  The healing was taken care of when he released his heart from the pain.  Now he helps him move forward with his new life.  He gives him a new start, a fresh breath, a whole new beginning.  It isn’t just about picking up the mat, it is about moving forward with a whole new life.  He is no longer the paralyzed man.  The bed no longer defines him.  But his past doesn’t define him either.  He has been released.  And he makes it to Jesus because he had friends that saw something special.  He has friends that understood he was more than his circumstance.  They didn’t feel sorry for him, they wanted more for him.  They loved him as he was but knew that so much more was out there for him.  They had faith that his healing could turn things around.  They love him and offer something so much more – they offer to introduce him to the one that would not judge him for his past or his present.  They offer him Jesus, the one that would set him free of it all.

    Those who observed couldn’t believe what had happened.  They were in awe.  I can only imagine the celebration.  The friends would gather round and tell this story for years to come.  It was a truly remarkable event.  But there would always be those who would question…was he worthy…did he deserve to walk…why him…what did it mean to be forgiven…what made him special.  But this man knew his life had been changed forever, and it meant more than the ability to physically take a step.  He had been freed leaps and bounds before he even got up from the bed.  He had been set free.

    What might you do if Jesus set you free?  Maybe he has and you are still confined because you don’t realize how much you have been freed.  Maybe you don’t understand that your healing may be more than a physical healing.  Could it be that you are free because Jesus has healed you spiritually?  Has he called you, forgiven you, and given you a new life?  Are you still held back because of what others think of you?  Are you being held down by the expectations of those that judge?  Are you weighed down by the opinions of others?  Know that when Jesus sets you free, you are free indeed.  You are meant to live abundantly.  He fills you with grace and mercy and gives you a brand new life.  He offers you so much more than to get up.  He provides all you need to really live.

    What’s holding you back?  May you call out to Jesus.  May you realize that you are his beloved.  And may you be set free.

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  • Strength – Devotion 49

    What defines strength for you?  Is strength defined by how much someone can lift?  Is strength measured by the size of muscles or stature?  Is strength the ability to conquer someone else?  Or is it something entirely different?

    Strength, for me, comes in many shapes and sizes.  It has very little to do with outside appearance.  Some of the toughest people I know are of little stature.  What if strength is defined by the ability to endure?  What if it is the persistent gift of never giving up, no matter the obstacles?  What if it is giving it one more try, on more day, one more chance?  What if strength is defined by standing up for what you believe in the face of much adversity?  Maybe strength is given to us even when we are facing the greatest storms of our lives.  Maybe we have built strength for times just like this.  Maybe, just maybe, we are stronger than we could ever imagine.

    One of my favorite things in God’s beautiful, awe-inspiring creation is a tree.  Trees speak strength to me.  They embody what it looks and feels like to be strong.  Some may think I am a tree hugger.  I am that and a tree admirer.  I seek to be like the tree.  They remind me of tough resilience even when conditions are the worst.  They remind me they can change with the seasons and adapt to the seemingly impossible.  They house birds that are looking for safety before taking on new life.  They provide sport for squirrels and other animals.  They shade those who are weary.  They hold swings for little children and provide hours of amazement as we grow older.  They are strong and they are powerful.  You don’t move them without serious equipment.  And they speak to generations.

    Maybe we should change our idea of how strength looks.  Resilience in the face of adversity seems pretty strong to me.  Natural beauty despite the elements exudes strength.  Support for others and safety for our neighbors is remarkable strength.  Cared for by God and renewed by his love is a great way to live.  I want to be like a tree.  Maybe I am and maybe you are too.  Maybe there is more strength in us than we can even imagine.  Stand tall.  Stand strong.  Never give up.

    Focus Scripture:

    Matthew 13:31-32

    31 He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; 32 it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

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    Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

  • Courage for the Day – Devotion 48

    Scared, frustrated, desperate…she must have felt all of these as she approached the crowd.  She didn’t belong.  She knew that because this had been repeated over and over to her for years.  It had been drilled into her.  She was aware no one wanted her around.  She had spent all her money and she wasn’t sure why she was even be there.  Why not give up?  But this was her life.  This was where she found herself.  She hadn’t chosen this path, it had chosen her.  And it was ruining her.  She wasn’t welcome in worship.  She wasn’t welcome in other people’s homes.  She wasn’t welcome anywhere.  It was a lonely existence.  Just one more try.  Just one more effort.  She wanted to give it what little she had left.  She believed if she could just get the energy, but mostly the courage, it would work out.  This would be the difference.  This would be the time that would change everything.

    When we read about people, we forget they have stories.  We tend to forget that they have backgrounds and situations that have brought them to this place.  In this case, we don’t know exactly what she has felt.  But we can imagine the isolation.  We can imagine the loneliness.  It is as if she has been forgotten.  And many can relate to feeling forgotten.  There are many that have felt unwelcome, unloved, dismissed, and discarded. Many have felt as though this was the end.  But this woman had the courage to get up and try one more time.

    I am talking about a story of a woman that had suffered with a disease for 12 long years.  Having spent all her money and given everything she had, she was still where she started, if not worse.  With her situation, she would not be allowed in worship.  She was unclean.  She would not be welcome.  She should not have been in the crowd that day.  She wanted to keep it quiet.  But she wanted to simply touch Jesus’ coat.  Just to touch it would be enough.  She could touch it and go home and no one would notice.  Only it didn’t happen that way because Jesus felt her touch.  His compassion was so powerful that her touch brought up something in him that made him seek her out.  She thought she was in trouble, but she was being seen in a good way for the first time.  She thought she would have been scorned, but she was instead loved.  As important as the healing was the love.  Jesus saw her.  It wasn’t in a disgusted way.  It wasn’t in a way of pity.  It wasn’t in a dismissive way.  He saw his child, his beloved.  And she was changed.

    Hear this…you are seen.  You are loved.  Whatever your situation, whatever your place in this world, you are not forgotten.  You are beautiful.  You are courageous.  You are God’s child.  May his compassion overwhelm you.  May you receive cleansing to enable you to move forward.  Pick your head up, beloved.  God sees you.

    Focus Scripture:

    Mark 5:24-34

    And a large crowd followed him and pressed in on him. 25 Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years. 26 She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. 27 She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 for she said, “If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.” 29 Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30 Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?” 31 And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, ‘Who touched me?’” 32 He looked all around to see who had done it. 33 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

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    Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

  • Wild Ride – Devotion 47

    Our time on earth is so relatively short.  It seems like it is here and over in the blink of an eye.  But even in the short time, it is such a wild ride.  Sure, there is grief and suffering.  There is death and loneliness.  There are so many challenges that cause us anxiety and stress.  But that is just a part of the picture.  There is also excitement and celebrations.  There are births and successes.  There are times when we have overcome and met the challenge.  There are accomplishments and meaningful relationships.

    It is as if life is indeed a wild ride.  Sometimes we are on the rollercoaster and having a blast.  We throw our hands up and our heads back and just enjoy the moment.  There are times when we are scared and look for the hand of the one next to us to help us out.  There are highs and lows and everything in between.  The ride can make us nauseous but when it stops for a moment, we want to ride again.  One of my favorite adventures is to go zip lining.  There is such freedom in flying from mountain to mountain.  It brings such joy to see creation from a whole new perspective.  I am grateful for guides that keep me safe and allow me to experience this joy without concern over the gear.  There are more adventures to be tackled in this wild ride of life.

    We can get stuck sometimes, though.  Our ride seems to stop at the top and we are left dangling, not knowing what to do, waiting for someone to come to our rescue.  That’s when friends and family come to our aid and do all they can to support us and love us.  Know that we are not stuck forever.  There is still so much more to experience.  There are still joys yet to be discovered.  There is still life on this wild ride.  My prayer is that you are able to enjoy the ride, if just for today.  I pray you know you feel the support and love as you tackle one more adventure.  Let’s go.

    Focus Scripture:

    John 10:10

    10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

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    Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

     

  • See? Devotion 46

    The headlines of the day scream for our attention.  They call to us to read, to search, to hear.  The articles want us to think or believe what is being said.  There are often pictures in these articles.  What would we do without visuals?  In those pictures are people.  These are snapshots in time of people or events.  They are brief glimpses into a life that we then use to create a story.  What we often miss is these pictures hold just a moment in the life of a real person.  A real person is captured just for a second.  From that second, we begin to form conclusions.  We imagine their lives.  We create our own narrative of who they are, what they have done, and what they should feel.  We put ourselves in their shoes.  But we are not those people in the pictures.  And what if, through our own conclusions, we miss Jesus.

    You may be wondering how in the world we would see Jesus in anything lately.  Everything has been so troubling.  There are fires and violence erupting.  There has been evil captured.  We could be distraught.  Or we can take a moment to see Jesus.  I have seen him.  It hasn’t been easy.  I have been forced to look more intently with my heart than with my eyes.  I have been challenged to look past the narratives that I tell myself.  I have even had to overlook the name calling and hate filled speech that has plagued what we see, read and hear.  Jesus is there.

    I see him in those that grieve, providing comfort.  I see him in those that fight the injustice, providing persistence and strength in the midst of turmoil.  I see him in the writings and expressions of my black and brown brothers and sisters, penning words that open our eyes and our minds.  I see him in the slow chipping away at a system that fosters discrimination and fear.  I see him in my fellow white brothers and sisters as we begin to see where we have gone so very wrong, often without knowing it.  I see Jesus and I am grateful.

    Where do you see him?  If you haven’t, maybe take another look.  Maybe take a look with your heart rather than your eyes.  Maybe stop the narrative we tell ourselves and search for where Jesus is at work.  I believe he is.  And I can’t wait to see where I notice him next.  Open my eyes, Lord.  Open my eyes.

    Focus Scripture:

    Philippians 2:12-13

    12 Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

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    Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

  • The Gift of Others – Devotion 45

    It can happen when we least expect it.  That person…that particular person shows up just when we need them.  It could be the person that helps us when we have a flat tire on the side of the road.  Maybe it is the lady at the register that provides encouraging words.  The man that we pass on the street offers us help when our arms are full.  These people come at just the right time – as if God knew exactly what we needed at that moment.

    This happens in friendships as well.  We may be struggling with a decision.  We might find ourselves worrying about the next day’s tasks.  And that friend, you know the one, shows up.  It is the friend that calls or checks on us at just the right time.  The text arrives or the messenger dings with the words we are starving to hear.  These are gifts.  These are people that we value in our lives.

    I believe that as God hears our cries, our grief, our calls out to him, he answers us with those in our path.  He understands our pain.  He grieves with us.  And he provides the love we need through others.  He answers us through the gifts of others.  He answers us through his own beloved.

    These people are willing to walk in this way because they have been loved by God.  They have felt and been overwhelmed by his amazing grace and all powerful love.  When we are overflowing with love, it shows.  We are able to be a light for others we might meet.  We are able to be an answered prayer because we are listening for God’s direction.  We are seeking ways to love because we can’t do anything else.  We are loved and we love.

    Whether you give or receive today, I pray that God’s love would wash over you like a mighty waterfall.  I pray that God provides you love and that you share that love with others.  May we become a gift of God today.

    Focus Scripture:

    John 8:12

    12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”

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    Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

  • No Prayers – Devotion 44

    Distraught, grief, pain, turmoil, unrest, fear – these can lead us to a place where we do not know what to do.  We do not know where to turn.  We do not know what is next or who to call.  We do not always understand.  When our lives are turned upside down, we may feel abandoned and lost.  When we feel betrayed, we don’t know who to trust.  When we lose a loved one, we feel a void that is forever implanted.  When test results are pending and we await surgeries, we can find anxiety creeping over us.

    The answer that we may hear or may even think to ourselves is that we should pray.  We should take the time to pray about it.  We hear that if it is worthy worrying about, it is worth praying about.  But what if we have no prayers?  What if the words are not there?  What if we do not know what to ask for and we do not understand our situation?  What if it is so all-consuming that we are speechless?  What if we are struggling with who God is and where he is?  What if we are struggling with our faith?  What if God seems so very distant in our time of greatest need?  What do we do then?  We may know in our heart to pray, but that may not translate to words. It may seem empty.

    What if God hears us in our tears and our exasperations?  What if God walks with us in our silence?  Could it be that God understands that we are struggling with our faith and is simply with us?  God does not need our words, he hears our heart.  He doesn’t need us to have the correct things to say or the right ways to say them.  He doesn’t require us to pray a certain way.  Resting in him may be the only prayer we need.  He may just provide shelter from the storm, no words needed.  He feels our pain.  He has watched us struggle.  He knows we don’t get it.  And in those times, I find that there are no prayers needed.  Just to find refuge in him is enough.

    Today, no matter what you may experience, may God remind you he hears your cries and he provides a refuge.

    Focus Scripture:

    Psalm 61:1-4

    1 Hear my cry, O God;
    listen to my prayer.
    2 From the end of the earth I call to you,
    when my heart is faint.

    Lead me to the rock
    that is higher than I;
    3 for you are my refuge,
    a strong tower against the enemy.

    4 Let me abide in your tent forever,
    find refuge under the shelter of your wings. Selah

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    Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

     

  • Press On – Devotion 43

    Our souls, our minds, our bodies can become so tired.  We can become weary and overloaded.  Life can feel as though it will swallow us whole if we just stand still long enough.  Getting up in the morning can be difficult and functioning through the day can require all our effort.  When we are constantly faced with grief, loss, injustice, and unrest, we feel the magnitude of it all.  It envelopes us to the point that we simply want it to all stop.  But often, it doesn’t.  Sometimes it doesn’t need to stop.  It could be a point of cleansing, a time of reframing, an opportunity to be molded.  And sometimes it is a time to simply be, knowing we are not alone.

    Success is measured in many different ways.  If we find ourselves tired and weary, success may look like one more step, facing one more day.  If we are overwhelmed with grief, success may be one more tear and one more memory.  If injustice is haunting us, it could be more time standing up for what is right and becoming a voice for those suffering injustice.  If we are beat down with depression and anxiety, success may be getting up, getting dressed, and taking care of at least one thing on our list for the day.

    We keep on keeping on.  We strive for a new day.  We work to see the promise of another sunrise.  We look forward to days when things will be different.  We press on to the calling that we have been given.  We seek some reprieve.  We look for those that are walking with us.  We feel the presence of the Lord who promised he would never leave us.  We simply keeping breathing…one breath at a time.  We press on.

    May God give you strength for your success today.  May you press on toward your calling.  May you know that you are not alone.  May you feel loved.

    Focus Scripture:

    Philippians 3:12-14

    12 Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal;[a]but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Beloved,[b] I do not consider that I have made it my own;[c] but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly[d] call of God in Christ Jesus.

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    Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

  • Do We Value Life?

    Today, as I seek God’s word, I struggle.  I struggle with the right words – how do I speak in times like these?  What do I say when tragedies continue over and over again?  I understand my words do not matter – but God’s words do.  So I pray that in the myriad of words I will bring to you today, you will hear something from God.

    I can’t help but wonder….Do we value life?  Do we really value life?  Is one person’s life less valuable than another?  Does one person hold more value because of who they are, where they live, their status, their color, their sex, their sexual orientation?  Does this change the value of a life for us?

    Embedded in our society is the belief that some lives hold more value than others.  The events this week of one man killing George Floyd while handcuffed as he pleads for his life, just to simply take a breath, remind us that racism is still as real and alive as ever.  George Floyd’s life held no value to the one that held him down.  Regardless of whether he had a criminal record, what he had been arrested for or anything else, the bottom line is that his value as a person was diminished.  In our recent past, racism was out in the open – where one goes to the bathroom, where one sits in an establishment or on a bus, what access to education and employment – these were all out in the open.  It was apparent that white supremacy was real, obvious and prevalent.  Since that time, it is still prevalent but hidden…it has been taken out of plain sight.  Anyone can go to any bathroom supposedly or sit anywhere in theory – but you could be looked at differently, and potentially treated differently.  You likely won’t be made to move, just a general wish you had not come.  And let’s be honest, the only reason that this racism is in our face now is because someone recorded it.  If it had not been recorded, it would have likely been swept in someone’s drawer as a closed case in favor of the white man.  Racism is held under such a cover that it is only when exposed that we come face to face with reality.  And reality is, in this case, quite ugly.

    We cannot make excuses for what is happening.  We cannot pretend that it doesn’t happen.  When those we love around us are fearful for their lives and the lives of their children, it is way past time to act.  And as the church, we should know better.  We should be the difference.  We should stand out front and fight against racism and sexism.  But we are often the last to say anything – one because we often find racism in ourselves and two because we know those who are racist.  What this really says is that we do not value all life.  We hold that some lives have more value than others.  Because of the color of skin or the lifestyle chosen, there is more value?  I don’t need to hear stories of where white people have been hurt or where black people have done something to be seen differently.  Bottom line…heterosexual white people have privilege because of ingrained white supremacy.

    Yet, church, this isn’t at all what we are taught.  We are not taught a difference in the eyes of God.  We are not taught that one group is superior to another – or even that there are groups.  There are not divisions based on color.  Jesus never gave us an example of division among his created.  Yet, here we are again.   We are not taught to hate.  We are not taught to decide who is worthy.  We are not taught to judge someone based on looks or appearance.  We are not taught that Jesus loves one group more than the other.  We are not even taught that God loves America more than he does any other country or any other peoples.  We have taken that on – and I cannot imagine that God is pleased with hate, bigotry, racism, sexism, or any of the like.  This is God’s world, not simply God’s country.

    It may be that you are saying we don’t know the other part of anyone’s story.  I am saying we don’t need to.  There is never a reason to hate.  There is never a reason to discriminate.  There is never a reason for white supremacy.  There is never a reason to devalue life.  And again…there is never a reason to hate based on the color of someone’s skin, their culture, their background, or their sexual orientation.  Hate is not the answer.

    I hear in the scriptures this:  For God so loved…God created…The Holy Spirit came upon them…Power was given to them.

    For God so loved the world…the whole world.  We know the scripture and verse.  Many of us have said it since we were children.  We have it memorized.  Even if you have not attended a church, you have likely heard of John 3:16.  Yet we are not hearing John 3:16.  For God so loved the whole world that he gave Jesus.  God loved the whole world.  It does not say that God loved white skin – side note, remember Jesus was not white.  It does not say that God loved those that we think should be loved.  It does not say that God loves those who follow the rules.  It says that God loved the whole world…all of it…all of us.  Jesus was sent because of God’s great love for us.  To devalue a life is to devalue someone God loves.  It is to devalue someone that God sent his son to die for.  Money and privilege and skin color do not change God’s love.

    God created…God created humanity with his own breath.  He breathed life into us.  To take that breath away is to take life away.  To stop breath is to stop life that God has given.  To not see someone as God’s beloved is to take God’s creation and tell God he doesn’t love this life as much.  I don’t see that in God’s word.  But I sure see it in our world.  If we truly believe that God created, then we will work to have equal value for all of God’s creation.  No life is less valuable.

    Today is Pentecost Sunday.  This is the Sunday that we remember the day that the Holy Spirit fell on God’s people – something promised by Jesus as a guide and a comforter.  I want to direct your attention to the scripture where Jesus describes the Holy Spirit.

    John 14:25-29

    25 “I have said these things to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. 28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I am coming to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you this before it occurs, so that when it does occur, you may believe.

    This is a portion of the description that Jesus offers about the Holy Spirit that is being given to the believers.  In Acts 2 we see the fulfillment of this promise.  As believers, we hold that Jesus offers us the Holy Spirit.  We understand that when we choose to follow Christ, we are given the Holy Spirit to live in us and through us and around us as we seek to fulfill God’s will.  I think that most of us could agree.  But what does the Holy Spirit do?  If the Holy Spirit is living in us, we are guided, helped, taught, courageous, loved, and given peace.  If we are led by Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit, I cannot see where we can be anything but love.  I cannot find where we can be anything but peacemakers.  I cannot see where there is room for hate or judgment.  I cannot find a place for racism or hatred or devaluing life.

    Christians, if we truly believe that God so loved the world…if we believe that God created…if we accept that the Holy Spirit is living in us…how can we tolerate hatred, racism, or the devaluing of any life?  I don’t see how those can be together.  I do not believe that God has filled us with his presence to make us feel superior or full of hatred or supreme to any other human being.  I cannot see how we cannot stand with our black and brown sisters and brothers in a time when there is struggle.  We should be standing with those that are hurting.  We should be fighting for justice.  This should be a time when we are showing that the world may be acting like fools, but the church stands with you, supports you, loves you.  The church should be leading the way.  Where are we church?  What are we doing in times like these?  Do we really value all life?  God created…God loves.

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