Yesterday, Beth and I went to the MLK service at Genesis Lutheran in Detroit. It was a high energy experience with singing, clapping, preaching and celebration. This community was at the same time concerned about the future sensing that the Civil Rights Movement had taken a hit recently.
With that said the preacher worked with passages from Jeramiah suggesting God had made great plans for those in exile and that they should cultivate great hope for the future. She went further into the scripture recognizing the fact that God wanted his people to pray for their captors that they might be blessed with every blessing.
In challenging times, whatever they may be, it is important to remember that God is with us, that God loves us and wants us and all people to be happy, joyful and free. It might be difficult to pray for those who seem to be against us or on the opposite side of an issue but that is exactly what we as people of God are expected to do.
“There is a time for every season under heaven.” Now is the time to build bridges in every aspect of our lives. The Spirit is present to open our eyes to new life through hope.
Most of us were disappointed about the Lions loss. The community had really come together and hope was shared by nearly everyone. That same hope for all of humanity’s wellbeing can be cultivated as well if we allow ourselves to become immersed in the waters of shalom.
On a very mundane level I have decided to now root for the team that beat us hoping they go all the way. Go Commanders!!! It is amazing how that prayer has lifted my spirits a bit.
There was a power in Lions Mania. It built bridges amongst rich and poor, rural, city and suburban, black and white and so on. That power is something that waits to capture our universal interest yet again. Let us begin by seeing all people as sacred, becoming open to the possibilities of new levels of community-wide unity that are waiting for us to experience.
Peace,
Pastor Mark