500in31: Day 8, 8.12.2017
I am standing up.
I've been following the news about what has been happening in Charlotte, all day today. I've also been following the response on social media. My heart is broken over the deaths that happened in the middle of the riots. My heart is broken over those who were injured. My heart is broken that hatred is running rampant in the streets and bigotry is giving birth to violence.
I cannot even begin to understand the "white supremacy" movement and its mindset. It is absolutely disgusting to me. For people to believe that someone is lesser than them simply because the color of their skin is different is absolutely abhorrent. Just sitting here, my heart is pounding and it feels like my blood is on fire. This kind of hatred, bigotry, and evil makes my skin crawl.
As a follower of Jesus Christ, I believe that every human being is created in the image of God. And I believe that every human being, regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, or any other factor, is equal. I know that Christians can get a bad rap. I know how intolerant so many of us can be. There are so many who profess Christ and yet represent Him so very poorly. My belief in the equality of all people is rooted in my faith, I cannot deny that. I cannot deny that Jesus Christ has made me who I am and Him and His work on the Cross is at the core of who I am. For any person out there right now that is being made to feel less than simply because your skin is a different color, I love you and I stand with you.
Some of the most beloved people in my life are those who are different than me. The very friend I am taking this writing journey with is African American, and she is hands down one of the most beautiful people I've ever met, inside and out. I have two precious, beautiful little nephews that are both black. I have cousins that are married to amazing black men and whose children are mixed because one parent is white and the other is black. And those things to me are beautiful. It pains me so deeply that people can hate someone simply because they are different. It is beyond me. I love the fact that I have family members and friends that are different than me. My life is filled with people who are of different ethnicities and backgrounds. And I celebrate that. I love seeing the beauty in diversity. I love learning from people of different ethnicities, backgrounds, and cultures.
There is so much I could say on this topic. But my heart is so pained and my mind so filled, that I cannot even begin to put my thoughts and feelings into words. So I will simply say this.
For any person that is of a different race or ethnicity, I stand with you.
For any person that is being made to feel less than because of who you are or what you look like, I stand with you.
For anyone person who has been made to feel unloved, unwanted, and who has experienced hatred or bigotry from someone who professes to follow Jesus Christ, I am sorry. That is not who Jesus is and it is not what He stands for.
Hate will not win. Bigotry will not win. Division will not win.
//
I copied and pasted a handful of things people have posted on twitter, things I have wholeheartedly retweeted because I believe these things. I am heartbroken but I have hope. People are standing up and speaking out.
"Stand against the schemes of the devil...withstand in the evil day & having done ALL to stand FIRM. Stand therefore." No sitting this out." // Beth Moore (via Twitter)
"I want it known that as a white person, the "white supremacy" movement is against everything I believe." #Charlottesville #BeautifullyEqual // Adam Swensen (retweeted via Twitter)
"People of #Charlotesville if this is your first encounter with "Christians" from the bottom of my heart I am sorry. Jesus is not about this." // Evan Hendrick (via Twitter)
There is only one side. #charlottesville // Joe Biden (via Twitter)
There is no sitting this out. So I am standing up.