Loving, Learning, and Leading

“ When Joshua was near the town of Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with sword in hand. Joshua went up to him and demanded, “Are you friend or foe?” “Neither one,” he replied. “I am the commander of the LORD’s army.” At this, Joshua fell with his face to the ground in reverence. “I am at your command,” Joshua said. “What do you want your servant to do?”” ‭‭Joshua‬ ‭5:13-14‬ ‭NLT‬‬ “ The bigger agenda is not a call to politicize the body of Christ but to faithfully reflect Christ and his concerns for the whole world in all of our public engagement” — Richard Cizik in New evangelical manifesto Yesterday, I was watching the Cleveland Browns lose with a bunch of Die hard Browns fans in Naples Florida when one of my newly found comrades in the 100 year war (slogan adopted by Browns fans to deal with the misery of losing for soooo long) said "Everytime a political commercial comes on, I turn away as it literally turns my stomach.  It feels so hopele

" Blackness is always assumed to be the problem"      -Drew Hart in "The Trouble I've Already Seen" Matthew 25:40  "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.  NIV Today, Amelia and I went to see the movie " Birth of a Nation " based upon the life of Nat Turner.  Nat Turner was born at the turn of the 19th century as a slave in Virginia.  He would lead a violent insurrection that led to the death of 55 Whites, mostly slave owners and their families.  Local government and Slave owner families responded with violent reprisals against hundreds of slave and Free Black men, women, and children.  The insurrection created a ripple effect where laws and processes were enacted that severely limited the ability to Blacks to congregate, read, or preach.  In fact, one could say that a fear-based legal and social culture was promoted, in which has extended to

"Pounds like thunder within my breast All the anger, all my humanness. And, though I call you Lord, I must confess I''m a stranger to your holiness A stranger to your holiness" --Steve Camp in Stranger to Holiness (1985) "*Reads news* *Looks in mirror* I will not despair.  I will defiantly identify in myself that  Which I hate in others and I will be kind" --Nadia Bolz-Weber @sacrcasticluther 7/16/16 “God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth. God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied. God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy. God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God.” Matthew 5:5-7, 9 NLT We live in unprecedented times.  The degree of violence, mistrust, deception, and division within our communities seems like it has been building and building and there is a sense of an impending explosion.  We have seen tragedy upon tragedy