Black Lives Matter - Are we getting the message wrong though?

Usually, writing and talking about racial issues is something that I just avoid because I prefer to focus on the things that bring us all together instead of things that tend to divide us. I am breaking that rule today because I have been seeing this hashtag used to defend the actions of a young man who was proven to have been assaulting a police officer when he was shot. It's tragic to lose lives that could be turned around and be productive in society, but actions and behaviors do have consequences.

I would like to propose using this hashtag to bring awareness of a tragedy that is happening in the black community that seems to be going largely without awareness. Alveda King has recently spoken out about the "55 million babies" that have never gotten to vote, marry, be productive members of society and so on because they were aborted in the womb. http://cnsnews.com The website Protectingblacklife.org, reveals that 79% of Planned Parenthood abortion facilities are located near minority neighborhoods http://www.protectingblacklife.org/. Not just near but within WALKING DISTANCE!! And do you remember when the undercover reporter called four Planned Parenthood facilities stating that they wanted to earmark their donation to kill black babies? http://fellowshipoftheminds.com. When the audio tapes aired, there was a real stir in the black community and a planned march on Washington DC to see that something was done. Within a short time of the story breaking, Barack Obama was named as the presidential nominee and was supported strongly by Planned Parenthood and suddenly there was silence from across the country and the march to DC never got underway. 79% of 55 million aborted babies is a LOT of black lives. These unborn black lives matter too, right?

Another plague is affecting the black community that should fall under the umbrella of this hashtag. There is a sharp rise in cases of HIV Aids in the black community. According to a study by the American Foundation for Aids research, “if one followed a group of Black gay men from age 20 to 40, one in four would be HIV-positive by age 25, rising to 59 percent of the same group contracting HIV by age 40.” http://www.therainbowtimesmass.com According to that article blacks make up 6% of the population in Massachusetts, but about 30% of those living with HIV! According to Avert.org, "African Americans make up only 12 percent of  the United States of America population, and yet accounted for about 46 percent of all HIV diagnoses in 2011." http://www.avert.org/ These black lives matter too, right?

I agree with the hashtag. Black lives do matter, just like all lives. Let's look at these situations where we are losing more and more lives every day and see if we can figure out some root causes so that we can turn the tide. In 2011, 72% of black kids were being raised in single parent homes, could this be part of the problem? http://newsone.com On the other hand, in a study in 2007 showed that 87% of black Americans are affiliated with a religious faith, with 79% stating it was very important in their lives. http://blackdemographics.com/culture/religion/ So, what is the answer?? I do not have the answer, but I am willing to keep asking the question. In the meantime, perhaps we can reach back to an old proverb that states, "Each one, teach one." If each law abiding, responsible one of us reaches out to teach at least one member of the next generation how to navigate this world, we can start to slowly turn the tide of death that is washing through our section of the American landscape.Even if we don't have the answer, we can make an impact and brighten the outlook for the future.

African Americans make up only 12 percent of the United States of America (USA) population, and yet accounted for over 46 percent of all HIV diagnoses in 2011. 1 It is immediately clear that African Americans are the population group most affected by HIV and AIDS in the USA - See more at: http://www.avert.org/hiv-aids-among-african-americans.htm#sthash.lYONknJB.dpuf

African Americans make up only 12 percent of the United States of America (USA) population, and yet accounted for over 46 percent of all HIV diagnoses in 2011. 1 It is immediately clear that African Americans are the population group most affected by HIV and AIDS in the USA - See more at: http://www.avert.org/hiv-aids-among-african-americans.htm#sthash.lYONknJB.dpuf

African Americans make up only 12 percent of the United States of America (USA) population, and yet accounted for over 46 percent of all HIV diagnoses in 2011. 1 It is immediately clear that African Americans are the population group most affected by HIV and AIDS in the USA - See more at: http://www.avert.org/hiv-aids-among-african-americans.htm#sthash.lYONknJB.dpuf

I disagree.

I look around me at the world today and I see so many instances of people being accused of having hate in their hearts for another person or group simply because of disagreement over viewpoints. This makes no sense to me. Have we as human beings lost the ability to separate a viewpoint from the person espousing it? Or is there something more at play?
I have a close friend who is like a brother to me. He and I have several points of view on which we surprisingly agree, but many upon which we strongly disagree. I am diametrically opposed to his points of view on some moral issues and political positions, but I would take a bullet for him.
If this is the case with my buddy, surely it is also the case elsewhere in the nation? So, here is the question that I really need to get to and hopefully get some people to think about. Is it possible - think about it - is it possible that the accusations of hatred are merely a tool to shut up the person whose viewpoint we disagree with?
I point to many issues as my proof: if you oppose anything that President Obama does, you are a bigot, a hater, a racist or in the  case of black Americans like myself, an Uncle Tom. If you are opposed to gay marriage being recognized as marriage, you are called a homophobe, a hater, and a bigot.
Wow, no one wants to be decried as a hating, bigoted racist, so we meekly shut our mouths and bow our heads and keep our opinions to ourselves. It is the right thing to do if you like not having your opinion heard and letting people believe you agree with the most vocal part of society. But, what if you don't want to be silent?
The bible tells us that we should speak the truth in love. If you are opposed to something that is happening in society, you need to find the courage to simply state that you disagree and state clearly why. We are advised to be courageous, especially when we are right. DO NOT be afraid to be despised or ridiculed by people for standing for what is right and moral. In the end, you have to answer to your conscience and if you are a Christian, you have to answer to God for how you handled the truth. Did you let your light shine or hide it? Did you act as salt in the world to preserve what is decent and right or did you leave the salt in the shaker? Some may not think it very important, but - I disagree.

Prayer of my heart.

Father,

I come to You today with a heavy heart. I come on behalf of myself, my family, friends, church, community, city, state, nation and world. Lord, we are making a mighty mess of things. We fail to heed Your word and we wonder when we fall into calamity. We fail to love each other as You told us to and then we wonder at the violence and pain that we see around us. We fail to seek first Your kingdom and Your will for our lives and then we are amazed when our lives are hollow, empty shells with no value. Father, we yield to our own lusts and desires, turning a deaf ear to Your guidance and we wonder when things seem to come apart in our lives.
Lord, we have allowed ourselves to become afraid to speak the truth for fear of being called intolerant or bigots or accused of speaking hatred. We allow ourselves to sit silently while perversion, greed, and deception run rampant in our society. We choose for ourselves leaders who refuse to acknowledge your sovreign rule and who pass rules that are opposed to Your will.
Just as in the earliest days of humanity, we compare ourselves among ourselves to determine our "goodness" instead of admitting that we are in need of the Savior that You sent to us. Father we are indeed becoming a foolish people, declaring in our hearts and by our actions that there is no God.
Please forgive us.
Lord, you have shown time and time again that You are a just God, but also a compassionate God. Even though we deserve every  punishment that could possibly be meted out to us, I ask for forgiveness. Lord, I beg you to please draw us individually and corporately to You.
Those of us who have accepted Jesus as Lord and profess with our mouths and believe in our hearts that He is Lord, reignite the passion in our hearts to seek Your will. Help us Lord to find the courage and conviction to live Your will and speak Your words of truth and life to our dying world. Revive us, Your people, once again.
Those of us who have heard the Truth and have chosen to turn a deaf ear to it, please continue to soften those hearts and to put bold people in their paths that they might be saved. Lord inspire Your children to keep reaching out to the lost and confused. Help us to inspire our friends and neighbors to seek the Truth. Awaken us Lord before the enemy succeeds in lulling so many of us into complacency. Help us to set our hearts and minds on You once more.
Forgive us, Lord.
Use us Lord.
Help us to truly be Your people.
In the name of Your Son and my Savior, Jesus Christ, I ask these things.

Amen

How to change the world.

I look around me at the world today and I am saddened. I see people losing their faith in themselves, each other and in God. I see people whose sole goal in life seems to be pleasing themselves or collecting more things that they can possess. It seems to be ever more difficult to locate courtesy, honesty, honor and chivalry. Integrity- do we even know this word any more? No one is willing to accept responsibility for their actions or circumstances. There is always someone else out there to point the finger at. What happened to our nation?
I am reminded that the bible teaches that there is none righteous, no not one. Two thousand years from the time of that writing and it is still as true today. No, I am not pointing fingers, because I am just as guilty. I want what I want when I want it. I get annoyed when I don't get my way. I too find myself asking God, "When?" even though I know I should be saying, "In your timing, Lord, let Your will be done."

Here's the thing... instead of griping about how bad it is - and it is bad - maybe it's time to start doing something about it? What can we do in the face of what seems to be insurmountable ugliness? I suggest taking a tip from a source that many would consider unusual at best; Michael Jackson. The song The Man In The Mirror came out years ago, but is relevant today as much as it was then if not more so. The premise is simple: be the change that you want to see in the world.
Here's what it looks like. If you want to see more honesty in the world, deal honestly with others. You want to see integrity, display it. Be kind and courteous. BE an example of Christian love if you wish there were more of it being shown. If each of us starts where we live, where we work and where we play, I think we might start seeing it reciprocated. It might be a slow process and sometimes it might seem pointless, but is it ever pointless to do the right thing? Try it. If nothing else comes of it, you might be able to sleep a little better at night knowing that at least YOU have tried to make a difference.
That is my food for thought for the day.

Blessings,
Stan

Who Are You Listening To?

Today I was reading in the book of 1 Kings where Rehoboam succeeded Solomon as king of Israel. Rehoboam had a choice to relieve the burden that his father had placed on Jeroboam and he got advice from two sets of counselors. The older guys that had advised Solomon said sure, ease their burden and they will be your servants for life. His buddies that ha grown up with him said, nah, you gotta show them who's boss (MAJOR  paraphrasing). He went with his buddies instead of the advice from the elders. Thus the kingdom was rent in two. He made a pretty bad choice. (1 Kings Chapter 12).

The point? We have to be careful who we take our advice from. In life there are numerous pundits that spout off advice to tell you how you should proceed. Not every one of them has our best interest at heart and not every one of them has a clue about what what they are giving advice about. How do you choose who to listen to? (Careful - I may be one of those who knows not a thing about what he is talking about!)

Some things I try to do:
1) Pray - go to God first for guidance. It can come from a person being inspired by the Lord or from God's word directly. He should always be our first source.
2) Look at the track record of the advisor. - I have 2 people whose health and workout advice I listen to without question or reservation. One is a personal trainer with a proven track record of helping people reach their weight loss goals and the other is a personal fitness coach who has personally lost weight and gotten into shape and earns a living helping others do the same thing. I know they know what they are talking about because they live it and I can see the results.  For spiritual advice, I look for those I know are well versed in God's word and who are living by the principles of the Lord. Praying the whole time is good too, because not everyone who professes to know the Lord give godly advice all the time.
3) Research - Looking back at history, we can see others that have been in the situation we are in and see what steps they took. Learning from history can help us keep from repeating mistakes that have already been made. As an example, I have a friend that didn't wait on the Lord to lead him to the wife he chose. His choice ended in divorce and custody battles and serves as a reminder to me to wait until God puts me together with Ms. Right and not to trust my first urge.

So there you have it, the thought for the day: Be careful who you choose to listen to for advice. Pray hard!

Sticking to your guns

How do you do it? How do you stick to your guns after that initial fervor to change a habit? No, really, I am asking how you do it because I seem to fail at this a lot. Here is my for instance... I am working on this journey to better health. I have embarked, taken positive steps in the right direction and yet, I keep goofing up.
Week one, I was at the gym for all three classes and did some walking besides that on my own. Last week, I made two of the classes and failed to do any of the extra work I needed to be doing. Three weeks in and I have gained back the 3 pounds that I lost in the first week. In my book, that counts as a FAIL.
Add to this the fact that I am trying to eat healthier foods in smaller portions and make sure that I drink a lot of water each day. In the first couple of weeks, I was doing okay with this or at least making progress. In the last week, I have been to buffets and bought and ate a whole pack of cookies. COOKIES!?! Um.. FAIL.
So, okay, I guess I am kinda begging for helpful advice or at the very least prayer. This journey that I am undertaking is almost as important to me as my journey to draw closer to Christ every day. If I don't lose weight, my joints and heart will begin to suffer. Not only that, but what single woman in her right mind would be interested in a guy who doesn't care about his weight and health? I would dearly love to be a husband and father one of these years, Lord willing, but doing what I need to do to get there is proving difficult. I am getting in my own way.
I could use the excuses that I was out with friends and that is just where we ended up or that healthier food costs a little more, but I know that the fault lies in me. There is some part of me that needs to be reconciled to a new way of thinking and looking at life. A new way of looking at exercise and a new way of approaching food. This is honestly becoming a real challenge for me. If you have ideas that I can employ on my limited budget, I am all ears. If you too are out of ideas, then just pray for me. Regardless of how hard this journey seems to be, I will walk on.

Blessings,
Stan

Take a breath

There has been a series of commercials that have aired in recent years regarding taking a pause to think before speaking or acting. I am not sure who it was that put these out, but I wanted to thank that person from the bottom of my heart. Many times in life, by speaking before taking a second to think through what was passing my lips, I have caused frustration, anger, hurt feelings and distrust in others. It sounds like a simple thing and it really is to simply take a deep breath before responding to whatever situation is in front of you.

Does it really cost you anything to take one good second to let what is about to pass your lips run through the filter of your mind? That one second delay may help save a relationship or keep open a door that otherwise might close for good. 

Why is that important? Well, if you are a Christian and trying to follow the teachings of Jesus, we are advised to speak the truth in love. Yes we can be truthful with people, but by controlling the tone and choice of words, we can get across a point without making the other person so angry that any chance of them hearing from you about the good news of who Jesus is and what He has done for them goes right out of  the window.

Truth is truth, but can be delivered with a hammer blow or with a handshake. Before you speak, breathe, and maybe even utter a short prayer regarding what you are about to say. You may be thankful for that extra second someday.