Hey SoulfulSQUAD. Praying you all are well and are taking care of yourselves today. I know this day is hard for many of us. The anxiety of not knowing the future plagues us all as we’re waiting to find out the results and who will be the next president of the United States of America. This may feel scary for some.
With Halloween just passing, I started to think about how to change up my songs for SoulfulMOTION for the month of October. I began to think, “What is actually scary?” I remember doing this as a Zumba instructor, and some of you remember doing Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” over and over and over and over again for years!!
Rather than ghosts, goblins, zombies, knives, blood, and guts… these things came to mind:
- Covert racism is scary to me.
- Overt racism is less scary to me…as I can at least know someone is racist and not be surprised.
- “Christian” Nationalism is scary to me. Because Jesus should come before and over everything.
- Hatred is scary to me.
- Allegiance to everything but Jesus and His teachings, is scary to me.
- The devil used to be scary to me… but not anymore. We know the end of his story.
But the scariest thing of all, is that as Christians, we’ve become complacent with ALLOWING these sinful things to happen around us, especially with our own families and friends.
Now is the time to exit this blog if you don’t want to open your heart and mind to someone else’s experience and racism. (And sorry to my Monday night class because you’ve heard this already).
Recently, my mom went into the grocery store and was looking for her weekly bananas. She, and a woman who appeared to be of Indian descent, were met by a man, who was clearly filled with hate. This man proceeded to verbally say something to my mother and the women, about them being “monkeys”. That afternoon, I spoke to my mom on the phone. Clearly shaken up, she proceeded to tell me about the incident, and her feelings.
Now, many of you know my mom. She has a loud personality, and typically doesn’t shy away from communication. Now in the heat of feeling this hatred from this man to my mother, I asked her, “GIRL!!!! WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HIM?!?!?” Her response:
Nothing.
I couldn’t believe it.
How could she not respond to this gross, overt, and disgusting expression of hate?
Well, when the Holy Spirit tells you to be quiet, that’s how.
My mom went on to tell me that she felt the Holy Spirit tell her to be quiet, and that this man didn’t need a response or any of her energy. She also told me that she and the woman exchanged words about the man as well.
Unfortunately, this is the world we live in.
As a black woman and a believer in Christ Jesus, I know that the coming days are going to get rough. With the first Black and South Asian woman as a presidential candidate in the United States, I do know that hatred against black and brown women is bound to increase. However, I didn’t feel that it would hit home so soon. There are so many people whose hatred toward the advancement of black and brown people is so extreme, that just seeing black and brown people in the grocery store getting their weekly staples can bring them to express their hatred in a gross manner. I’m thankful that my mom was in a public place full of people. I’m thankful that she wasn’t alone.
But what does this mean for you?
As a believer in Christ, you’ve got to know Jesus and his character.
You’ve got to know what Jesus stood for.
If you don’t… It’s time to crack open that Bible.
As a believer, it is our responsibility to stand up against hatred, and if this is something that makes you uncomfortable… time to grow up. We can’t continue to move forward watching and hearing those that we love spew hateful and incorrect thoughts about those in our communities. It puts people in true and present danger. Have you heard a family member or friend say hateful remarks about anyone who is different from you? What did you say? How did you feel?
SoulfulMOTION’s mission is to connect ALL people to God through a praise, worship, and fitness commUNITY. Here, we do not tolerate hatred of any kind. It isn’t our job to judge people, but God’s commandment to us is to first LOVE God, and then LOVE people. That means to love people regardless of what they look like, vote like, dress like, etc.
I recently read an article where someone who has experienced hate from “Christians” wrote, “There is no hate like Christian love.”
Let that sink in.
It cuts deep.
Today, regardless of how someone votes and the outcome of the election, let’s choose to see where God has His hand. Let’s choose to actually be like Jesus. And if the outcome doesn’t come out the way that you like, how can you choose to mature in your faith and treat people with respect and kindness? Are you fearful of the things that seem scary to you? Do you trust that God is faithful in the midst?
Scripture is really the only good way to end this newsletter today. God’s living word tells us:
“And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”
Romans 8:26-28 (NLT)
I just pray that you all take care of yourself today and this week. I also pray that you speak to God, even if it is through groanings, as we read above that the Holy Spirit pleads for us. God is present with us through hard things. I pray that you all find comfort in that today and in the days to come.
Blessings y’all, And we hope to see you at a SoulfulMOTION Fitness class this week.
Your instructors are waiting for you with arms wide open.
