I’m Ashamed of Us

Not my usual “raindrops on roses" blog title, is it? There’s a reason. My blog on Monday, and blogs since then, have been very family-and-self-minded. My motives were pure in that I hoped to exemplify the blessings of enjoying God’s creation, family and family fun. As well, desiring to encourage others to slow down or to stop and be still so we can hear and see God’s goodness and mercy in full array. Seriously, our family uses that time to shut out the world and focus on us and Him.

But, that’s part of why I’m ashamed. My granddaughter, an avid Instagram follower and poster, on Wednesday, asked: “Nana, did you hear about the man that was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis?” I hadn’t. She proceeded to tell me the back-story to George Floyd’s death, perpetrated by the officer who had his knee on his neck and wouldn’t release him even when he was saying he couldn’t breathe. Maybe I expressed some sadness, but certainly not to the measure that this incident deserved. I casually dismissed it from my mind. I’m so ashamed.

I’m back home and the visibility of what happened is on all media. I watched three black ministers and one white minister detailing the incident and the shame of it all on a Christian talk show. The black host, Clifton Davis, former “Amen” actor, was compelling in leading the discussion. The white minister, Rich Wilkerson Sr., had little to say. He just cried and expressed, like I am, shame. The panel each spoke to the options we have as Christians, which includes operating in the fruit of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. One of the black ministers encouraged white ministers to start speaking up more about respect, honor, and dignity of the human race at large.

And, I agree. This is a human race issue. It is a “kindness” issue. It is a “love others” issue. It is a deep-look-inside-ourselves issue. We cannot just sit back, close our eyes and hope that everything’s gonna’ be alright. We can’t just let others “fight the good fight” or to offer a mediocre prayer. It's about all of us speaking up and out about daily choices.

We can live with the chaos and negativity and assaults on our brothers and sisters OR we can treat God’s children as the absolute priceless treasures that they are by speaking up and out for them. Enough is enough. We can be Good Samaritans. We can be good neighbors. We can be the peacemaker in the midst of family disagreements. We can walk away from a group that is telling inappropriate jokes and stories. Violence in movies, video-games, and tv shows we watch, the music we listen to, and the sensitive or insensitive conversations we have with others all determine which side of the camp we'll be on. Peace or anger. Love or hate. Philippians 4:8 says it best: "Keep practicing those things that are true, honorable, fair, pure, acceptable, commendable, excellent, praiseworthy. THEN, the God of peace will be with you."

And, finally, back to this scripture which is for the pandemic, the chaos in politics, in conditions of the heart and soul, and conflict in our society and in our homes, please heed these words: “If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14.

Lord, please forgive us. Please forgive me for my lack of concern, my lack of compassion, my lack of speaking up for my fellow man and woman. Tenderize my heart to be as loving, caring and tender-hearted as Your heart. We pray for a uniting of our hearts as Your children – as brothers and sisters in the Family of God. In Mandisa’s song, she sings: “We all bleed the same. We're more beautiful when we come together. We all bleed the same. So tell me why, tell me why, we're divided. If we're gonna’ fight, let's fight for each other. If we're gonna’ shout, let love be the cry.”
Hear our cry to love, oh Lord, we pray. Amen.

Tell Your Heart to Beat Again

Being in Austin brought an extra blessing on Saturday night, because I was able to attend Danny Gokey and Mandisa’s “Rise Out of the Dark” Tour. You’ll remember them as finalists on “The American Idol” Show (seasons 8 and 5 respectively).

Especially endearing, was one of Mandisa’s dancers, Sydni Chambers, who is my kids’, Ryan and Shawntel’s god-daughter who has been professionally dancing for years and now is a lead dancer and back-up singer for Mandisa's concert tours. Of course I was proud of our sweet girl as we watched her high energy, over-the-top hip hop dancing to Mandisa’s songs -- all to the glory of God. She was incredible and I was exhausted just watching her. ;-)

Christian contemporary artists, Danny Gokey and Mandisa celebrate their life transformations since they both arose out of seasons of darkness. Their comeback stories inspire and encourage all of us with "Nothing is impossible with God!". On their latest albums, both singers share how faith helped them through some very difficult times. It was a packed out concert of great music, incredible lighting and sound, but most importantly, I sensed it was a night of healing for those who attended – including me.

In Mandisa’s case, she struggled after the death of a friend which brought on tremendous depression that came from it. Danny, as American Idol fans know, lost his wife suddenly before he auditioned for the show, and weathered career challenges after the competition was over. We were able to hang for a while with Danny and his beautiful wife that he met after the American Idol season and now they have three children, with the youngest being only 7 weeks old -- which certainly is a comeback story. We knew Danny before when he was a headliner at one of our business’ big launch event.

I must tell you how I was personally touched Saturday night. One of my favorite songs of Danny’s is “Tell Your Heart to Beat Again” and when I heard it live for the first time, I couldn't hold back the tears. It reminded me of the times when I felt like my heart had stopped beating and I was living in a place of day-to-day existence and routine – just endeavoring to make it through each day. I knew pain, heartbreak, worry, concern, fear, disappointment, sadness and wondered if I could ever face another day. Because I also knew the power of trusting in God and His great ability to heal and restore me, I reckoned with the lies of the enemy and I opened my heart to the truth of God’s promises to me like “I will never leave you or forsake you,” Hebrews 13:5; “I have loved you with an everlasting love”, Jeremiah 31:3; “If God be for you, who can be against you,” Romans 8:31, and I TOLD MY HEART TO BEAT AGAIN.

Danny Gokey told the story of a friend -- a pastor who had a Heart Surgeon that attended his church and the pastor asked if he could watch him perform a heart surgery. The day came when the heart surgery took place, and he watched the surgeon cut open the chest cavity, take the heart out and stop it from beating and repair it. Then they had to restart the heart again. But as they proceeded with the necessary procedures to start the heart back up again, the heart wouldn’t start. The doctor did something that was not typical, and started speaking to the patient, “Mrs. Johnson, we’ve repaired your heart. It’s all fixed. We’ve done all we can do. Now, I need you to tell your heart to beat again.” Shortly thereafter, her heart began to beat.

Danny went on to share how there are voices in our lives that lie to us and they tell us we’ll never be healed, we’ll never get over the loss, we’ll never forget the past, we’ll never be restored, we’ll never love again. But, like the woman who came into agreement with the doctor and his report that her heart was healed, we, too, must come into agreement with God who makes us new again, restored and healed. We just have to tell our heart to beat again, and be willing to live again because God is the healer of the broken-HEARTED and makes all things NEW (Psalm 147:3)!

Here is Danny sharing that story along with this song that means so much to me. BTW, I bought this necklace at the concert as a daily reminder – my heart is beating strong!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUHRDCYnFfg