Alright, y’all.
This is a shoutout to my fellow amigos who feel as though they are currently fighting that daily battle for freedom. Those who feel as though their world has flipped around this year and are trying to set it right again. I feel like we have a little issue that we need to chat about.
I’m talkin’ to me. I’m talkin’ to you. I’m talkin’ to anyone who feels left out in the cold and robbed by everything that’s happened these past months.
We’ve realized, in the short span of a year, that evil works quickly, agendas are powerful, people can be gullible, and comfort, routine and life as we know it are fragile, fragile things. We’ve learned that rights are sometimes decided by corrupt leadership, not everyone in America sees freedom the same way, and sometimes it’s an uphill battle that we seem to keep tumbling back down.
We’re tired.
We’re hurt.
We’re confused.
And if truth be told… many of us are angry. So many things we hold dear are on the line and like a mama bear protecting her cups, we’re lashing out, teeth bared, claws ready to tear to pieces, all while roaring loudly enough to be heard for days.
Now, let me be clear, there is a time for righteous indignation. But truth be told, we humans aren’t the greatest at it. We often blur the line between standing boldly on truth and lashing out without self-control.
I’m preaching to the choir here. I’ve talked over everything that’s transpired during these crazy days more times than I can count. I’m tired of hearing myself talk about everything that’s gone wrong this year. And it just keeps getting worse. There are wicked leaders in this country who want to take away everything dear to me… they’ve already begun to. And I can’t stand it. I hate it. It’s not fair. It’s not right. And I’ve had it up to here… (insert my hand reaching as far above my head as humanly possible.)
Are you tracking with me?
Good.
So, what do we do? Oh gosh, there are a million things we could and should do in the midst of these troubled days and I could write a million more blogs on it. But this particular moment is one I’m dedicating to listing a few things we need to STOP doing.
Like, right now.
Dear friends…
Stop Lashing Out
A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls. (Proverbs 25:18)
When an animal is wounded they often go crazy. They rip and tear and growl and fight to get away from anything that might hurt them or take advantage of their injured state. Not unlike many of us right now.
It’s so easy to lack self-control in our actions and interactions with others. The world is in chaos and we tend to join them some of the time. We speak without thinking and lash out at anyone we think is trying to hurt or take advantage of us, and that doesn’t show strength. It shows fear and a lack of trust in the one who remains sovereign in the chaos. King David said it so well in Psalm 39:1…
I said, “I will guard my ways,
that I may not sin with my tongue;
I will guard my mouth with a muzzle,
so long as the wicked are in my presence.”
And that leads into my next point of concern…
Stop Slandering
Whoever belittles his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding remains silent. (Proverbs 11:12)
I think we tend to vindicate speaking evil of others so long as what we are saying is true. Our human nature longs for that to be the case… but what do we do when Titus 3 clearly tells us to “speak evil of no one“. There are no stipulations. That’s not to say we should never call out sin and wrong doing, but there’s a difference between simply calling out sin… and literally tearing someone to pieces with your speech and speaking unkindly of another human made in the image of God. Sometimes we say we’re just speaking truth when in reality, we’re just being mean. Discernment and humility are vital here!
My dad gave some advice on this recently… he said that when we speak about another person who is standing on the opposite side of our current issues, we should say it in such a way that we could turn and speak Christ to them in the same sentence.
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32)
And on that note…
Stop Seeking Revenge
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” (Romans 12:19)
God has not changed in these thousands of years. He does not need our human efforts to avenge his people. I know many of us have played with the idea of fighting fire with fire and join the cheating, rioting, and burning down buildings to get our way and turn the tide in our favor. “If they’re going to do it, we’ll have to do it. They need to know what it feels like to feel our wrath, frustration, and retaliation when we don’t get our way.” Dear friends, don’t even entertain such a thought.
So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 7:12)
If you call yourself a Christian, don’t seek to avenge yourselves… Our great God sees every moment of time from the beginning to the end… nothing goes unseen and no wrong done to his people will go unavenged.
But remember, while you are busy dwelling on the wrong doings of others…
Stop Being Self-Righteous
Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (1 Peter 5:5)
Remember, friends, that no matter where you stand on any of this, if not for God’s grace, we could all do the most heinous, wicked, and evil acts imaginable to man and not give it a second thought. God’s grace, Christ’s blood, and the Holy Spirits conviction is THE ONLY thing guarding a believer from complete and total destruction. So when you see other humans acting in a way that you believe to be contrary to God, take a lesson from Luke 18 and the story of the pharisee and the tax collector:
“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’
Here’s a hint: The tax collector got it right.
Self-righteousness in these days will not help you stand, rather, it will trip you up every time.
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. (Proverbs 16:18)
To continue on in this, we must:
Stop Disrespecting Authority
“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:1-4)
It doesn’t matter if we don’t like it.
It doesn’t matter if it doesn’t seem fair.
God said it. We need to do it.
I’ve written before on practicing discernment when it comes to obedience. We must obey our authority so long as it doesn’t go against God’s word. We must always obey God rather than man. But there really shouldn’t be any question on respect.
When Paul, unaware that he was speaking to the High Priest, spoke in a way that was unbefitting, he immediately apologized when his mistake was pointed out: And Paul said, “I did not know, brothers, that he was the high priest, for it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’” Paul was being unfairly questioned at this point, but it didn’t change his realization of the need for respect.
I hear all too often that we don’t have to respect our governing authorities if they “haven’t earned it” or if they “don’t respect us.” But truth be told, this isn’t the Biblical way to look at it. We serve a sovereign God who places and changes rulers at his will, and just that fact makes those whom he has set to rule as worthy of respect.
Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. (Romans 13:1)
This was written to those under the iron clad rule of Rome… so don’t get going on how much you hate your governor… it doesn’t change anything.
Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor. (1 Peter 2:17)
Speaking of hating your governor…
Stop Being Hateful
You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. (Matthew 5:43-46)
It’s funny… up until this point in my life, anytime I’ve seen passages referring to “enemies”, it always felt funny. I mean, I’ve known people with whom I may not be on the best terms, but I don’t know that I’ve ever known of anyone in my life who wished harm on me. That’s how I would define an enemy… someone who literally wants the worst for me. And for the first time in my life, I feel the reality of having enemies. It’s scary, but it also offers an amazing opportunity to apply scripture as never before. The scriptures are chock full of passages that speak to how we ought to treat our enemies.
Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. (Luke 6:27-28)
Maybe you don’t think you’re hating… but if you’re not loving them… what are you doing? If you wish harm on your enemy, if you can’t say anything nice about your enemy, if you’re slandering your enemy, if you lack generosity toward your enemy, if you think you’re superior to your enemy… that certainly doesn’t sound like love.
To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” (Romans 12:20)
If we want to talk about someone truly wronged for doing nothing but good, Christ is, as always, our perfect example. Yet when he was crucified by sinners, for sinners (don’t forget, that’s us), rather than spewing words of hatred, he spoke words of mercy:
And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)
Reflect Christ. Reflect our good and gracious Father. Our hope should be that the ones who walk in darkness would come to light… so live with that at the forefront of your mind and let it drive your heart to love rather than hate.
But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. (Luke 6:35)
I’ll Stop Now…
I love you all dearly. And I repeat that if I don’t apply these myself, I’ll be a complete and total hypocrite, because I’m simply telling you guys what I’ve been hit over the head with in fighting the battle of mercy over wrath, kindness over bitterness, humility over self-righteousness and love over hatred.
Now, anyone who’s read anything I’ve written, knows that I’m not calling anyone to complacency. I’m simply calling you to live out your activism in love. I know it’s hard, dear friends, but God so clearly calls us to fight our battles in a way that honors him and will lead others to Christ. Titus 3 sums this all up, better than I ever could.
“Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.”
Basically, if we find the unfair treatment we are experiencing to be vindication for disrespect, slander, malice, rude behavior, self righteousness, and hatred… we’re wrong.
Let’s grab hold of that fact.
Let’s hold tightly to God’s unchanging, sufficient, and perfect word.
Let’s repent of hateful hearts.
Let’s be kind, speak life, and love greatly while proclaiming truth boldly.
Love you all!
My Family Freedom 