When Prejudice Meets The Word

Soul Man — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 23:47:11 +0000

Last weekend’s message was simple but very difficult for me to deliver. Remember the major point from the weekend, as Malachi helped us to Reset Justice? – “Correcting injustice in the world, begins with God correcting injustice in me. “ It was a heavy message for me to deliver, but God lifted my spirit in an amazing way as someone literally allowed God to immediately deal with the injustice in their own hearts.

After the 11:00 service a man approached me and said he needed to ask me to forgive him. Immediately, I wondered what it could be. He told me that when I was introduced as the candidate for the position of Senior Teaching Pastor, he didn’t vote for me. “I am sure that many people didn’t vote for me.” I opined. So, his comment was no big revelation to me. What he said next was. He said, “You need to know why I didn’t vote for you.” I continued to listen. Because of his experiences in the past, he had developed a spirit of prejudice and racism against black people. In essence, he was saying he didn’t vote for me because I was black. He began to weep and asked me if I would forgive him. I said it wasn’t a problem. He retorted, “Listen! You don’t understand. I really need you to forgive me. I don’t want the junk of prejudice and racism spilling over into my kids’ lives. I didn’t vote for you and I was wrong. God has been and is using your preaching to impact my life.”Wow! To His glory!

I realized what God was doing. This man heard God and was acting on what he heard. I forgave him. We hugged for a good while, weeping in one each other’s arms (Glad we weren’t in the men’s bathroom doing this – Smile! It was a joke). I was moved, humbled, and I rejoiced as I was reminded that God has me in the right place at the right time doing the right thing. God, thank you for using Malachi to help us see that: Correcting injustice in the world really does begin when we let God correct injustice in us. For His glory!

There Are Only White People Here

Soul Man — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 01:38:13 +0000

On Friday, my six year old daughter and I went to a Father and Daughter banquet, hosted by a popular local Christian radio station in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It was a wonderful night for us and for so many fathers and daughters. As we were sitting at the table, waiting for our salad, my daughter made a very observant and arresting statement to me: "Dad, there are only white people here." I heard in her statement several things:

Why are there only white people here?

Where are the people who look like us?

This is not my normal.

This is not God's normal.

You see, our kids attend a multinational school, live in a diverse neighborhood, have a diverse posse of friends, and attend a multiethnic church. We are intentionally preparing them for the world.

What should I assume from this monolithic representation at the banquet? Are the powers that be not concerned about people of color? I don't think that's a fair assessment. Do they think Black and Hispanic fathers don't care about spending time with and being a heroic influence to their daughters? I know that couldn't be it either. Did they intentionally market this event to their white listeners. I must say that the music on this station and its affiliates is not diverse enough to attract people of color. Did they market this event specifically to their financial base? I don't know any of the marketing strategies they employed. All I know is, out of close to 800 people on Friday, my daughter and I were two of four people of color. The day before, from what I understand, was a little better, but not much. This is not our normal and has not been our normal for the last 10 years.

My first thought was to gather a "colorful" logistical team to put together a similar event for fathers and daughters of color. I don't think this would solve the problem and would definitely perpetuate the deep divide and polarization of cultures in our city. This would be a different kind of abnormality.

I hope to have a conversation with the VP of Communications to discuss my concerns about the unbalanced representation at the banquet. I am praying that it will be a healthy and productive conversation. Maybe next year, if we go to the banquet, my daughter will see the world in which she lives everyday and the world in which the apostle John and Dr. King dreamed.

Do you think this is an issue worth engaging in? A conversation worth having? What questions would you ask and what issues would you raise in the conversation with the VP of Communications?

Soul Man » Race

When Prejudice Meets The Word

There Are Only White People Here