
I have had so many thoughts swirling in my brain lately that I’ve wanted to type out and see on the screen … maybe share with someone who might listen and understand … but I could not for the life of me remember the password to this blog. Sometimes I think God kind of nudges me that I DO NOT have to say/type everything I am thinking (like on Facebook, etc) and He makes it impossible for me to do so. Maybe that was the case?!
Anyway, I found where I had written down the password once upon a time. I’d forgotten I’d done that because at one point in my life I was going to never blog again. My life was just so uneventful and boring … Ha! Never claim that! Look at us now! 😉
Are you as tired as I am? Weary? Trying to ignore the news, and yet, we can’t ignore it. These things that are happening around us are REAL. Real people are dying, real people are hospitalized and on ventilators, real people are being killed in the streets in some cities, real people are feeling angry whether founded or unfounded, real people are afraid and uncertain … and it is just heavy sometimes.
I am saddened so often by the ugliness on social media in particular. That used to be my happy place, my interaction with friends and family … and now some people have made it mean and nasty because they think they are so right and everyone else is so wrong — and I’m talking about both sides of the story! I get it that there are strong opinions and convictions out there. I have some of my own.
I just wish we could discuss without name calling and ugly words. I wish we could disagree but still love each other. Among my Christian friends who are more vocal and active on social media, I’ve observed some interesting tendencies. There seem to be different “camps” among them. I am not sure which one I fall into because they all kind of bug me in their own way. I guess, like usual, I am a hermit alone in my very own camp!!
Some Christians are speaking out very strong – especially politically and about the mandates this virus has enforced upon us (Arkansas, my state, now has a governor-issued mask mandate). I guess I am more of a peace-maker because I just wear the mask (I also work in and around a medical environment so I am used to it!) … but some are stating that the mask is the just first of rules that will lead us down a long line of other laws put upon us to control us. I don’t understand enough about it to say that’s true- though I am leary of too much government control. Especially upon houses of worship and in our own homes. I don’t doubt that we are being tracking and spied on and manipulated to an extent — I mean, HELLO INTERNET! This post right there among it!!
Others of my Christian friends are suddenly very “woke”! They are educating me on the daily about how I am white privileged and how I need to educate myself about the injustices all around me. They are actively participating in rallies and protests. I can’t even begin to keep up with all the new terms I am supposed to be implementing: individual/institutional/internalized racism, cultural appropriation and/or misappropriation, microaggression, diaspora, colonization and decolonization … and it goes on. I guess I am too simple – but I love that I grew up in diversity thanks to the military community. I have had dear black friends, Asian-American friends, native-American friends, and Hispanic friends (and potentially more categories but I do NOT ever put my friends into categories!). I have traveled and learned about other cultures and love learning about other ethnic groups’ traditions and meals and history – to include their struggles …
Let me tell you about my own family’s struggles. I am the grandchild of a refugee – my Oma was forced out of her home in East Prussia by the Russians due to a war that was absolutely not her fault. She lost everything in 1943 … Is it not the same?! I guess not, according to some. And I really shouldn’t say too much because I don’t know enough to back up the other sides’ arguments or to understand why …
I get that in some areas and in some times a black person worries more when pulled over by a policeman if they will be profiled and assumed guilty. I never have to fear police because I am white. Again, I don’t know anything about it … but I am baffled that building are torn down, stores are looted, and people are hurting and killing each other over this.
I am baffled that professional SPORTS – something that is supposed to be recreation and fun – is forcing us to choose sides and judging our motives if we choose not to participate in the movements of the day. 😦 And don’t start me on the actors and singers who are pushing agendas … Hollywood is pretty much dead to me.
But to ground myself – I know that GOD knows. He sees all this and all the people – good and evil and misguided and seeking and sincere and struggling. Sometimes I wish I were more like my vocal friends who are boldly stating what the BIBLE says, what GOD says….what our TRUE American history proves. They are reminding us that “Blue Lives Matter” too – so many noble and honest and good LEOs out there! And one issue on whose bandwagon I can hop on is that “CHILD LIVES MATTER”. That includes not only the pre-born but the thousands who are being trafficked today.
“It’s really critical that organizations think about trafficking when they’re responding to all crises. Obviously coronavirus is an enormous challenge for the entire global community, but trafficking is such a big issue. We need to do a lot more.” ~~Samantha McCormack, the Global Protection Cluster’s legal specialist on trafficking in persons. (link to source)
We might think that human trafficking and s-x trafficking is a problem in Washington DC, Las Vegas, Orlando, or Atlanta – and of course, in foreign countries, particularly India or Thailand … but it is everywhere. Here is a recent report from my home-area of NW Arkansas:
Increased Human Trafficking during Pandemic as reported from Hub of Hope who provide victim support and services in our area.
BOTTOM LINE (at least for now and so I can conclude this very long post):
For me, today I have to reach back to a verse I reach for often: Proverbs 3:5- TRUST in the LORD with all your heart … and LEAN NOT to your own understanding …
Because obviously, my understanding is limited – but I trust God has this all under control. Because I don’t know anyone else who really does!