In light of the events happening in our nation today, I wanted to be sensitive to this moment in history.
To be honest, I was unaware of the lingering and monumental tension that had been rising since August of this year regarding Michael Brown. It was a story and a life that garnered a great deal of attention this past summer, but had become overshadowed by new media stories about politics, blizzards, and celebrity on-goings.
Yes, I had been unaware, yet not fully ignorant. Something within me poised me in front of my living room TV last night around 9PM. Upon turning my television on, I turned to a local channel. And already there was a "Special Report".
I knew what I was in for.
Before anything was set in stone from the man giving his detailed written speech regarding this special case, I already began to gently weep.
"This doesn't feel right..."
And then in the haze of the speech, as if brushed over like a comma or an incidental pause, the fate of a nation's true unrest was now given reason to manifest.
And now there are so many opinions, but mostly broken hearts and severed spirits.
But as heavy and thick as this all is, to my own surprise, I am not surprised that this tension has erupted and manifested in our country. Most already knew it was coming.
As a Black woman, I may seem less of a threat to certain authority figures, and it's true, I have not experienced the type of racism my father has or my brothers have being male and being Black.
But instead of becoming embittered and jaded by the plethora of newsfeeds out there, I'm simply forced to ask myself, what is the 'Higher Way' in all of this? What is the more Excellent Way?
These ways don't just start with the broad overview of life and appear only at protests, but instead come to hit us at the ground level. The small choices we make on a daily, which then in turn lead to the bigger picture.
Many people are frustrated trying to understand (or not understand) the place of injustice in all of this.
But just picture yourself going through your own daily injustices. How do we react?
When someone cuts us off on the highway, when someone lies about your character, when someone cheats you out of money. Frustration ensues to the say the least.
But now imagine the stakes are a bit higher, someone hurt your mother, your father, or your child.
Injustice is such a fiery tool and instigator.
But yet, we as Believers are called to a more excellent way, because a more excellent way was extended to us in love, while we were boldly against or indifferent to such a love from God pursuing us.
This excellent way doesn't leave us a decorative doormats, but instead gives us wisdom for the season (how to move forward in love, compassion, and forgiveness while being intentional for positive change) and gives ultimate jurisdiction--the final word to God.
It may seem crazy to you, but I've personally seen the justice of God rise up on my behalf throughout my life. Therefore, the ability to believe that God is about justice and dispenses it in due time is not hard for me to believe at all.
The end of this story is not in the unrest, but in the healing that is meant to come to this nation.
Moreover, it's interesting to me, a friend of mine is in the movie, "Selma", which is set to open this year on Christmas Day.
The process of this film has been years in the making, and we all didn't quite understand the many delays it encountered year after year.
None of us really knew what the cultural climate would be when this film would finally premiere.
And alas, here we are, needing a voice of hope, a voice of promise, a voice a triumph from heaven to once again speak identity over this unique nation with such a tumultuous and rich legacy.
With that said, I've watched this "Selma" trailer several times:
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6t7vVTxaic
And it has become clear to me, this movie was never just about being a biopic about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., but it is also meant to remind us all, of who we could be, and who we are meant to be even in the midst of heartbreak, injustice, and hope deferred.
Wisdom's Knocking:
"Do not let yourself be overcome by evil, but overcome (master) evil with good."
- Romans 12:21
"Do not let yourself be overcome by evil, but overcome (master) evil with good."
- Romans 12:21