I’m angry, y’all.
I’m angry that our country is going down the toilet. I’m angry that my Church has to deal with
more scandal. I’m angry that there is
still racism in this world. I’m angry
that minorities and women are still treated differently and paid differently. I’m
tired of “Christians” treating people horribly.
It’s almost 2019 and we are still doing today the same things that we
were doing 60 years ago, 100 years ago, 500 years ago, 2000 years ago, and
beyond.
I read the Old Testament and the New Testament and God is
trying to get people to do the right thing.
He created us to be better, but he gave us free will, so we aren’t. We
aren’t better. In fact, I would go so
far to say we are worse. He gave us
brains, but we don’t use them. He gave
us the knowledge of right and wrong. He
gave us everything and we just push it away.
Ultimately, he gave us his Son, who gave his life for us, to cleanse us
from sin, but what are we doing? We keep
sinning.
Now—I’m not trying to make this a religious debate. But, we need to look at what is right and
what is wrong. Jesus said “love your
neighbor.” He didn’t qualify that with
anything, not color, religion, race, creed, geography. “Love your neighbor.”
It’s simple really . . . everyone is your neighbor. The guy next door who cuts his grass at 6:00
am, on Saturday, when you are trying to sleep. The lady the grocery store who
is trying to keep her kids in line, when they are all having meltdowns. The jerk who cut you off on the freeway and
then flipped you off, because he thinks he’s right. The people in the next town, the next state, across
the country, the other side of the world.
These people are your neighbors.
The lady who paid for your meal in the drive-thru lane
ahead of you. The guy who helped you
pick up all your papers when they went flying from your arms. The young man who donated his bone marrow and
you’ve never even met him, but his donation kept you alive. The service men and women who leave their
families behind so that their families and yours can sleep safely at
night. The villagers in remote locations
who welcome with open arms those who can help them to help themselves. These people are your neighbors.
So, when Jesus said, “Love your neighbor,” these are the
people he is talking about. Is it really
that hard? Maybe, maybe not. But here’s what is hard. Love your neighbor . . . your black neighbor,
your Muslim neighbor, your female neighbor, your transgender neighbor, your gay
neighbor, your redneck neighbor, and yes . . . your terrorist neighbor. We may not like them, but we must love
them. It’s hard, depending upon your own
fears, to love your neighbor.
So, here it is. I’m
angry that so many people don’t love their neighbor that they do horrible
things. I’m angry that you can’t go to
the movies, concerts, the park, worship service without worrying that you might
just get shot. I’m angry that when these
things happen, the first things that pop up are gun control and religion. I’m angry that we can’t have a dialogue
without spewing vitriol hatred toward each other. I’m angry that we can’t fix it. And, I’m
really angry that it seems to be condoned and even cheered from our country’s “leaders.”
I put leaders in quotes, because I don’t think they are
leading. I’m not just talking about the
President and his cronies. I’m talking
about every single person who is supposed to be looking out for the welfare of
this country and its citizens. I’m tired
of party lines. I’m tired of Democrat
vs. Republican. I’m tired of Christian
vs. Muslim vs. Jew vs. Atheist. I’m
tired, y’all.
We have to fix it.
I don’t have the answers, but I do know that the answers don’t lie in
the rhetoric that is spewed day in and day out on the news, on social media, in
the streets. It starts with you and me.
We have to make it better. We
have to take a stand. We have to make it
right. We have to love our neighbors.
