Tag: Hate

Seeds of Hope

Good morning God. I come with a heavy heart this morning. I am tired of all the hate and violence in our world. It hit home this morning, as I watch a loved one and his family struggle with the grief of violence.

This morning, I lift prayers up for this family and every family walking through pain and loss today caused by hate and violence. We know life has always been a struggle between peace and violence. Good and evil. We know love and peace give hope to a broken world. That is something that so many of us are striving for in this world. We also realize that there is a group of people spreading hate and violence to destroy peace, hope and love. Good and gracious God, we know hate and violence tries to shatter love and hope. We know hate and violence can tear apart people, families and communities. But we also know that by loving and caring for the hurting, we can bring hope and love back to broken relationships and communities.

In each of us, is a seed of peace and love. It calls out not only to be recognized, but to be nurtured and cared for. As we scroll through social media or turn on the tv, we see what seems like an endless stream of hate and violence. Dear God, help us hold on to those seeds of peace, hope, love and unity.

As fear and violence try to destroy and divide us, may our repulsion of these actions turn us to the soil of our souls. May we instead plant seeds of hope, love and peace. May we work together to nurture those seeds of change. Regardless of skin color, different faiths, cultures or political views may we work together to create change. Not just change for this generation, but for generations to come.

Dear God, do not allow us not to buy into the lies that resistance of violence requires anger, aggression and animosity. No, keep reminding us that peace, prayers, love and community are the ways to achieve the positive changes we cry out for.

Dear God, remind us that love and peace are a constant pursuit and they only grow when we nurture and care for them. Peace, hope and love require constant tending, mindfulness in every moment, and a willingness to see each person as a reflection of You. Amen. ~OC

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Today

Today’s a new day! As I scrolled through social media this morning and watched the news, my heart broke with all the hate I saw. A lady in Atlanta trying to burn down the childhood home of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. All the antisemitism and hate against Muslims. The hate against Christians. As I scrolled through all this hate, I realized the as Christians we have to step up and act by shining God’s love and light on this hate and violence. We need to pray, to be sure. But those prayers must also be met with peaceful steps of action that respond to this unconscionable violence and evil with a resounding No.

This is not a call to activism per se. This is a call to truly be the hands and feet of Jesus. He provides an example of love for all, and commands that we do the same (Matthew 22:36-40.) But love is not only an emotion we feel for individuals, it is the basis and fuel for action. If we truly love all of our neighbors, it stands to reason that we must act when they come under attack.

The love of God never fails (1 Cor 13), but too often our love does. It fails each time there is an act of racism or hatred perpetrated and we remain silent. In those moments, when we choose not to speak up, to pray, to advocate for change and to educate ourselves and our sphere of influence, we are complicit. Our love does fail at times, and we have the power to change that.

As each of us watch the news or scroll through social media we see the evil of bigotry and racism. The violence we are seeing is where bigotry and racism lead. We need to speak up. Today, we have multiple ways to peacefully make our voices heard. We can talk to our families, speak with our children and co-workers about the realities of hatred and racism. We can engage in thoughtful dialogue online and make posts on social media. We can take steps in our own lives to demonstrate Christ-like, action-oriented love to everyone, and to our neighbors who may be the subject of this violence.

Let’s come together on these issues and decide in our hearts to take some step of action, right now. Today we can make a difference. ~OC

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Wake Up Church

Today’s a new day. If you truly want to find out what a church believes, you do not even need to attend the church. Just check out the social media pages of some pastors and their spouses. As I have scrolled through my social media pages, I have been saddened to see so many pastors and their spouses more concerned about politics than the gospel. So concerned about their political views, they are willing to attack other believers who do not think like/act like/speak like they do. Evangelicals need a wake up call, need to become more compassionate and humble, focused on the gospel. Believers and churches need to stop getting caught up in out right lies and conspiracy theories. Faith community, you can fill every public office with a conservative right-wing candidate and this nation will still be a mess, because the only hope is Jesus. It’s about a heart change, not a Republican, Democrat or Independent change. Wake Up Church. Jesus is love, grace and forgiveness. ~OC

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Let Love Flow

Today’s a new day! I pray the following words will encourage you today.

When anger boils inside you, let love flow out.

When hate squeezes your heart, let love flow out.

When bitterness grips your life, let love flow out.

When faced with disappointment, let love flow out.

When an unkind word is on your lips, let love flow out.

When the world mistreats you, let love flow out.

When your overwhelmed and frustrated, let love flow out.

In every situation, remember to Choose Love. It’s all about love. Let it flow out. ~OC

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Make The Pledge

We cannot continue to turn a blind eye to the issue of Racism in our nation. We have to finally say enough is enough. We have to Rise Up against Division. We have to Demand Change. We have to Rise Up against Hate. We have to share Love. I am encouraging everyone who cares about Love and Justice to Rise Up and take the Pledge to End Racism. Will you Stand Up and make the Pledge with me? ~OC

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Check Our Hearts

As I scroll through social media and have conversations with some Christians my heart breaks. I read and hear comments that must break Jesus heart. I think to myself did that Christian actually read their post before posting it or did they check their heart before speaking. Probably not.

As I study scripture, I wonder what Bible some Christians are reading. Because my Bible says we should love everyone. Not just those who think like us, look like us or worship like us. No, we are to love Everyone! Sadly, I see a lot of Hate coming from those who would call themselves Christians. Here are a few examples:

*Those calling themselves Christians with their Christian flags, storming the Capital on January 6th. I could really just stop there, but let’s go on.

*Those calling themselves Christians buying into the conspiracy theory that the 2020 election was stolen by the Democrats. Remember, no one ever produced any real proof. Every court, including the Supreme Court ruled there was no proof of election fraud. Yet the conspiracy theories continue. I believe conspiracy theories are nothing more than gossip.

*Some who call themselves Christians believing every Democrat is evil.

*Some who call themselves Christians believing racism is a thing of the past.

*Many Christians and Churches not speaking out against racism.

*Many so called Christians being part of hate groups.

*Many Christians being offended that some people refused to recognize Donald Trump as President, but now those same Christians loudly shout President Biden is not their President.

As I wrote this post, I thought to myself why would anyone want to be a Christian? But then I realized the Jesus I serve is all about Love and Grace. The examples above do not represent my Savior and most Christians. Jesus loves everyone. Sadly some Christians have perverted the Christian faith. It is up to true believers to stand up for what’s right. Even when doing so is not popular. It’s time for the Christian Community to check our hearts. ~OC

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God’s Tears

As I continue to pray for America, I imagine God bowing his head in sadness. His tears flowing as so many people who call themselves Christians, act with such hatred and meanness. They seem to have forgotten the beautiful scriptures about loving their neighbors. All Neighbors! The Liberal Neighbor. The Conservative Neighbor. The Homeless Neighbor. The Addicted Neighbor. The LGBTQ Neighbor. The Incarcerated Neighbor. The Immigrant Neighbor. The Depressed Neighbor. The Disabled Neighbor. The Atheist Neighbor. The Black Neighbor. The White Neighbor. The Hispanic Neighbor. The Asian Neighbor. The Middle-Eastern Neighbor. The Native-American Neighbor. The Neighbor of a Different Faith. The..,,, Neighbor.

Think about the sadness God feels looking down on America and seeing all the hatred and division. His heart breaks. Does your heart break? Mine does. So, I will continue to share love. Speak out against hate and violence. I will continue to pray. ~OC

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Monuments of Hate

Lately, as I watch the news or scroll through social media, I see some people are upset about some monuments being taken down. I hear people making the argument that people are trying to erase our history in America. Especially Southern history. Let me share a little about the history of Southern monuments.

Most people think these Confederate monuments have been around since the end of the Civil War in 1865. This is not the case. The vast majority of these monuments were built between 1895 and the 1950s. Why were so many Confederate monuments built during this time period? Well, it had nothing to do with celebrating these dead soldiers. No, the building of these monuments had more to do with hate and intimidation. Let me give you a little history lesson.

1895-1915: Jim Crow laws are alive and well during this time period. There is a resurgence of the KKK and other white supremacy groups. A large number of Confederate monuments are built during this time.

1915-1955- Jim Crow continues to rule throughout the South.

1955-1970- The Civil Rights Movement kicks into high gear with the Supreme Court Brown v. Board of Education decision. In the South, racist groups begin a reign of terror against African Americans and start erecting Confederate monuments again. The motivation was to continue terrorizing African Americans. Most of these monuments were placed in the middle of town and at courthouses.

So, when I hear my fellow Southerners complaining about “Our” history being washed away with these monuments being taken down, I wonder if you truly know the history behind these monuments. These monuments are not about history. These monuments are about hate. That is not the kind of history I want to celebrate.

Here is another history lesson for you. If you travel to Germany, you will not find monuments celebrating Hitler. If you travel to South Africa, you will not find monuments celebrating Apartheid. You will find museums remembering the victims of these horrible crimes.

Let me share one last thing. I do not believe people should be destroying these monuments. That’s just dangerous. Someone could get hurt. I think these monuments should be taken down by city workers and discarded. We need to stop celebrating a history of hate and intimidation. Those were not the good old days. ~OC

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My Heart Breaks

As I hear about another black man in America being murdered for simply being black, my heart breaks. My heart breaks for the families. My heart breaks for every person of color that fears for their lives when dealing with law enforcement. My heart breaks for every parent that sits home late at night, praying their son or daughter of color makes it home safely. My heart breaks for America.

Racism is still alive and well in America. If you don’t believe that, you are fooling yourself. My brothers and sisters of color are discriminated against every day. That’s just truth. If you doubt that truth, your living in denial. If you doubt that truth, take the time to have a real conversation with a friend that looks different than you. If you don’t have a friend that meets that criteria, you might be part of the problem. Racism is sadly still alive and well in America. That’s just truth.

Christians everywhere need to stand up against racism and social injustice. We can no longer sit around and just pray for the families. Churches can no longer just talk about racism and injustice after the murder of another black man in America. Church leaders need to be having regular conversations about racism and injustice with their congregations on a regular basis. God’s people need to have real and honest conversations about racism and injustice in America. We need to pledge to make a real difference. Until we have these tough conversations, we will continue to be a divided nation and my heart will continue to be broken. ~OC

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