I remember when I went back to school to get a graduate degree. By then, I had four children, the youngest a toddler. I liked being an older student, but the challenge was balancing my time - an already scarce commodity. My grad program required lots of research and papers; I found I liked it.
Have you ever typed a document and then lost it all? I have, and it was gut-wrenching. This paper was due in a month. So for the past month, I researched, outlined, and wrote notes. I kept track of my sources so they could be appropriately cited. Finally, on a Friday evening, I sat down to type. I powered up my computer, reviewed my notes, and started typing. My thoughts were flowing seamlessly, and I was pleased with the way my research came together. This is amazing! I'm going to ace this paper. But then something happened, and in an instant, all my hard work was gone. AARGH!!!!
There are many beautiful things to love about the story of Ruth in the Bible but what stands out most for me is the community of women. Communities are typically unified in purpose, connection, and culture. It's a space women need but won't miss until it's not there.
Naomi and Ruth are women returning to Bethlehem in Judah. Their integration into the larger community of Bethlehem is highlighted by the community of women.
As a mom, wife, sister, and employee, the need for God’s constant presence through prayer is inevitable and palpable. When I’m flustered by the day-to-day tasks of motherhood, it is then I turn my gaze upwards seeking the One from whom my help comes. When I feel alone or unheard, I turn to Him remembering that he always hears me. When I’m at crossroads with decision-making, I seek wisdom from His voice and His word. At the end of each day, no matter how it went, I’m grateful that I made it to the end of the day, with His help.
When the impact of systemic racism reared its ugly head, I was taken aback by some of the responses I heard from my Christian brothers and sisters. It seemed most were shocked by what was common knowledge for me - the effects of racism, and now were feeling awkward as they struggled with their new reality.
Initially, I shared some of my thoughts around racism in various posts via the comments section and other articles. But this article allowed me to bring all my ideas together around the intersection of racism and Christianity.
Last year, it was my goal to be featured on a podcast. I tried to make that happen, but it fell flat, so I let it go. This year, to my surprise, I'm featured on two podcasts. Cintia Listenbee is a longtime Christian blogger. I like her no-nonsense approach to following Christ as it resonates with me. When she invited me to be a guest on her podcast, I was thrilled! It was a virtual lovefest.
What I've learned in all of this and more is that God's timing is best. God's timing will test you, but when things come to pass, as he said, it is the right time. Listen in to hear other profound truths that were shared.
As I chatted with my brother, once more, the conversation turned to racism. In his case, he lamented the fact that it always seems to rear its ugly head when he least expected it; when he thought he was doing everything right. What makes it difficult is knowing the cause but assigning the blame to other factors. "Let's go back to the drawing board; let's rethink this idea; you seem angry when you're presenting." Frustration builds when you've seen similar tactics work for others and not for you; others don't have to go back to the drawing board or have their speech assessed. Instead, their ideas are accepted while they continue to thrive.
Racism, sexism, feminism, classism, ableism, anti-semitism - common issues today with the common theme of denigrating those they affect. As a black woman, I've dealt with a couple of these in my life. Racism is prevalent and comes up often in many conversations because it affects the professional and the personal. There's no denying racism though
What can make a man so burdened for others that he pours out his heart to God on their behalf? Like a loving parent, when Ezra prayed (Ezra 9), he was appalled by the blatant ignorance of God's laws by the people of Israel. The Jews weren't always this way. In previous chapters, they stood firm. Ezra's love for God and his people, combined with his knowledge of God, brought him to his knees.
Ezra's prayer has a posture of reverential fear and priestly intercession. Ezra 9:1-2 seems to recall passages from the Law of Moses against intermarriage with the surrounding Canaanite tribes, in particular, Exodus 34:11-16 and Deuteronomy 7:1-4. The failure to separate was more
3:00 am, 10:00 am and 2:00pm. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner if you are on death row. This was Ray Hinton's reality for thirty years in the State of Alabama's Holman Prison. Not everyone on Death Row deserves to be there - remember that.
Ray Hinton was summarily convicted and sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit in September of 1986. His only crime was being a Black man in the state of Alabama. When the crime occurred - a murder of a store manager, he was at work 15 miles away, where his manager could vouch for his presence. With an airtight alibi, he thought he would be released. But none of that mattered. It wasn't an honest mistake; race had everything to do with it.
"You know I don't care if whether you did or didn't do it. In fact, I believe you didn't do it. But it doesn't matter. If you didn't do it, one of your brothers did. And you're going to take the rap. You want to know why?' These are the words that were said to Ray after he was arrested by a police lieutenant. He continued, "I can give you five reasons why they are going to convict you. Number 1, you're black. Number 2, a white man gonna say you shot him. Number 3, you're gonna have a white district attorney. Number 4, you're gonna have a white
The amazing thing about reading and studying the Bible is that the old becomes new. Always. I can't tell you how many times in my life I've read the Bible, but it is amazing to me that each time there's a new application, new insight, or new conviction. I think this happens because the Bible is a practical book for aspects of life infused with Spirit-filled writers who were seeking just like we are. While sometimes we are looking for something that appeals to a specific situation, we soon learn that it is the reader who has to learn to view life differently and recognize the Bible's practical application to most if not all situations. So we're being transformed as we read.
Currently, I'm reading the book of Joshua and as you can tell from recent posts there are many insights to be gained from reading this book. Joshua is the leader who led the Israelites into the Promised Land and as such Joshua details their conquests and how the land is divided up between the twelve tribes. Of special significance is that the tribe of Levi does not receive any land because they were to be priests to the Lord and overseers of the tabernacles and its rites because only the Levites could carry and set up the tabernacle. (Numbers 2:5-13) As the Levites were to have no territorial domain allocated to them like the other tribes in the conquest of Canaan, they were to be distributed throughout the land in certain cities appropriated to their use. Part of their inheritance consisted of forty-eight cities spread throughout the land (Numbers 35:6-7). Of these forty-eight cities, six were designated as cities of refuge. The cities were Kedesh, Shechem, Hebron, Bezer, Romath, and Golan (Joshua 20:7-8). (gotquestions.org)
The cities of refuge were in place for what we know today as manslaughter; the attacker could flee to a City of Refuge and be free of retribution from the victim's family because the Law permitted life for a life in the case of deliberate murder. But since this was not deliberate, the attacker had an opportunity to live, plead his case, and eventually be returned to his family.
The institution of the cities of refuge, together with the rules prescribed for the guidance of those who sought an asylum within their walls, was an important provision, for securing justice as well as mercy.
What were the rules?
If you did the unspeakable - you had 6 choices. Your job was to get to the nearest one. BTW I learned that the routes to these cities were always clear. There were no roadblocks in escaping to one of these cities.
At the gate, the murderer stated his business. What brought you here? The attacker told their story to the elders of the city.
The elders then welcomed the attacker into the city and gave him a place that he may dwell among them.
If the attacker was pursued by an avenger (for e.g. the victim's family) the attacker was protected in the city. The avenger was not allowed in.
Once the heat wore off, at some point the attacker stood before the congregation for judgment. If he left the City of Refuge he forfeited all protection.
Once the High priest died, the attacker could return to his home city (with no fear of retribution) because the priest had anointed him since he was now a citizen of the city. The murderer was no longer viewed as a murderer. (Joshua 20:1-6) The High Priest bore the attacker's guilt; this was established in the Law and was recognized and acknowledged by the Israelites.
What struck me as I read about the cities of refuge was that God thought about everything; grace and mercy were built into the law. What we consider the worse crime - taking of another life, allowed for refuge and forgiveness. Imagine what this would look like today - our prisons would not be overcrowded, the prison pipeline would be severely reduced, the mindset around the crimes would be different, refuge, redemption, and forgiveness would have real meaning for all of us who aren't perfect. Instead, in our attempts to do right we have thrown away individuals for lesser than manslaughter. This is grievous.
Interestingly, the surprising thing when we look through the scriptures is that we can find no actual example recorded of someone actually using the cities of refuge. A city of refuge was available just in case an act of murder was committed unwittingly. We all needed a way out...just in case. The creation and designation of these cities were an act of grace. We all have a way out - God surely became that way out for all of us.
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Romans 3:23 [NLT]
When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Romans 5:6 [NLT]
May His thinking permeate our thoughts so that we can exercise His wisdom in governing our lives and our land.
Have you ever heard the expression - "The first time someone shows you who they are, believe them" that's attributed to Maya Angelou? I have great respect for Maya Angelou but I've often wondered about the context of this expression.
This expression is multi-faceted in that everyone that you meet won't be a part of your life - so the first time you show me who you are, you show me who you are. I may like it or hate it - but it is who you are. If we never have further interactions, good or bad it's fine. If we have additional interactions, depending on what I see, I must rely on God's grace and mercy so that our interactions aren't negative. Interactions may eventually lead to a relationship; this has more of a chance of happening if I view you in a positive light. If we're a family I may not have a choice and may have to deal with you regardless.
In order to know what you're seeing you have to know who you are - some of us only see the good and some only see the bad and then some of us are realistic. Particularly in relationships, people may become jaded and not see a person for who they are even though their actions indicate otherwise.
People change; people change drastically for better or worse; people change incrementally or have total character changes; people change all the time. The person I was 10 years ago is not the person I am today and I would hate for someone to treat me today the way I was yesterday. It's almost like a parent choosing to treat a child like he is 10 years old even though he's 30.
Many people throw this phrase out as a way to be unforgiving or to place themselves on a pedestal.
I guess the real question is, once you believe them, what do you do with this belief?
I believe in grace and mercy; I believe in bestowing it to others because I've been a recipient of it.
Grace is defined as divine love and protection bestowed freely on people; the state of being protected or sanctified by the favor of God; an excellence or power granted by God; a special favor.
Mercy is defined as compassionate treatment, especially of those under one's power; clemency; a disposition to be kind and forgiving; something for which to be thankful; a blessing.
In our society, we're not big on forgiveness. We say it but we don't live it. If a person was imprisoned and he is reformed he/she has the hardest time being accepted. We don't focus on rehabilitation and reformation but on disposal.
We are all fallen people, but God can change any life and turn it around for His glory. We've seen it in the Bible in the case of Paul, but I've also seen many instances of this in my life. I know people that used to smoke or drink and now they don't. One particular person attributes it to God drastically removing the desire for cigarettes and since that day he's never smoked. Like Paul, your passions were channeled in the wrong direction. God can and does change lives, even ours. It's up to us to believe this and treat new creations as new creations.
I want my life to be overflowing with grace and mercy towards others even if I'm sometimes hurt by it. I want to be a lightning rod to affect change in others. I want the Light that is in me be a bright light to all. I don't ever want to write people off or have this as a standard way of operating. I believe in all of this that God has and will guide and give me discernment so that I know how to interact with whomever I come in contact with.
As Christians, we are recipients of God's grace and mercy; may we bestow these gifts to others also. When people show you who they are, but allow for the possibility of change.
But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) Ephesians 2:4-5
How often do you grant grace and mercy to others? Pray that God would give you opportunities to increase in this area.
Job, a righteous man, has been on some roller coaster ride: first he had a lot - he was wealthy with a good family; then he had nothing - he lost all of his possessions, his children and his health. His friends comforted him initially, which was good, but they ended up rebuking him as they "comforted" him. A fourth friend shows up - Elihu, who offered more palatable advice and then disappeared. Then God showed up out of the whirlwind and questioned Job.
When we recite the story of Job, we talk about his suffering and his eventual restoration but we often overlook what happens before Job is restored.
After God confronted Job, he is humbled and expressed it in Job 42:2-6[NLT]:
I know that you can do all things;
no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’
Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know.
“You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.’
My ears had heard of you
but now my eyes have seen you.
Therefore I despise myself
and repent in dust and ashes.”
Job is humbled and acknowledged the sovereignty of God. I think as humans we struggle with sovereignty - it's not a concept we are comfortable giving to other humans because we feel they are just like us. But God is not just like us - he is above us and defies human comprehension and is worthy of ascribing sovereignty. He can become like man and interact with us, but he is not only a man; He is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent.
Job also acknowledged his ignorance of God - surely I spoke of things I had no knowledge of. This may be the epitome of submission - recognizing that with all of your smarts, you will never be as knowledgeable of God.
He acknowledged that he had a spiritual encounter - not at all similar to what he had with his friends. His friends left him depressed and angry - God did not. As a matter of fact, Job was left in a better place emotionally and spiritually, though at this point in time his situation was still the same.
Job repented - "I despise myself." Job had an about face in his thoughts. Job knew he was a righteous man but after having an encounter with God, though righteous he despised himself. What a change in mindset.
Before Job was restored, God also rebuked Job's friends for the bad advice they gave him and for slandering God; they were wrong in their observations of how God works as it related to Job's life and in general. They did not provide an accurate representation of God's attributes; they totally overlooked God's grace, mercy and sovereignty. Therefore God instructed Job's friends to make a sacrifice and Job had to intercede or pray for them; at which point, God accepted Job's prayers on his friends behalf.
He had 10 more children - and his 3 daughters were considered especially beautiful
Friends came by to console him and to give donations
He went on to live to 140 and saw 4 generations of his children
He died an old man and full of years
We don't know how long Job's trials lasted, but he was never in them alone. God referred to Job as my servant, before the trials started and during the trials.
Sometimes, we wish to be restored and also have our latter greater than our beginning, without actually going through the trial and humbling ourselves. It's not just the going through, it's the changed mindset to one of submission that actually helps us to overcome.
Where are you right now? Are you encouraged by the story of Job? Do your trials make you stronger or bitter? In your trials are you momentarily angry with God or do you accept his sovereignty? Does knowing why you go through anything help you? If yes, how? If no, why not?
We all need to try to do it, but it's not something that we can do successfully for we are all different. I think the initial impetus for the statement was to prevent anyone from being so quick to pass judgement (in a negative way). There's that word judgement. Because apparently if you walk a mile in some one's shoes and you come to a different conclusion other than the one they came to, you are judging.
I don't always need to walk a mile in some one's shoes to understand their predicament. I don't need to do drugs to know that they're bad, I don't need to touch a hot stove to know I will be burned, and I don't need to steal bread to know it's wrong, even if I'm hungry. Walking in some one's shoes comes in to play when you analyze the events leading up to a situation.
And this is where I say, "There but for the grace of God......" I've been angry and I've had thoughts I shouldn't have; I might have done things out of sheer desperation. But something stopped me. I didn't do it.
It doesn't make me better than you, it makes me human and it makes me empathetic.
I can sympathize with a lot of things. We live in a flawed world and the more I talk and interact with people, practically nothing surprises me in terms of what people will do. But that does not always mean actions are justified - if that were the case, our prisons would be empty.
No it means, there is a standard. There is a right and there's a wrong and regardless of if I walked in your shoes or not, there was a choice to be made in how to proceed.
We commend people when they do the unexpected, and we condemn them for being the base humans they are.
Walking in someone shoes can be helpful but it does not provide the arbiter of how to deal with a situation. It only provides a window in to how they were thinking and what they were feeling at the time. And then. you being you, get to decide differently. You may speak about it or write about it, but everyone won't be on your side and that's fine.
I'm not discouraging trying to understand others by walking in their shoes, but if they come to a different outcome, put the shoe on the other foot and walk in their shoes. Please walk in my shoes, if you can. I'll understand if you don't or can't. Honestly, just listen, try to understand and acknowledge regardless of if you've walked in my shoes or not. We all need grace.
You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate. Luke 6:36 (NLT)
