I’m Not Racist, I’m Just Ignorant (Or: Love is an Action)

Hello friends!

I don’t know if you noticed, but our cities are on fire.
Are the violent actions justifiable? Maybe not.
Are they understandable? Yes.
Is the anger justifiable? Absolutely.

Our cities are on fire.
And maybe if we had listened to peaceful protests, paid attention, made changes, they wouldn’t be burning.

Our cities are on fire.
And maybe if the church had listened and loved like Jesus, they wouldn’t be burning. Maybe if Christians hadn’t shied away from difficult conversations about racism and color, they wouldn’t be burning.

Our cities are on fire.
And maybe if white people had had those difficult conversations and reflected on our privilege and used it to help our black neighbor, they wouldn’t be burning.

Our cities are on fire.
Maybe we can’t change the past, but we can change the future. Maybe we can see how Jesus sees, and love our black brothers and sisters instead of brushing off their fears and concerns just because we don’t understand. Maybe if we’d been more proactive in trying to understand and educate ourselves, they wouldn’t be burning.

My heart weeps and breaks as a city my family lives in burned, weeps and breaks as MY city burned.
And it also rejoices that my family and friends are safe; rejoices that the town I grew up in is taking a stand and that the local government officials and police stand with the Black Lives Matter movement (I see you Potsdam).

My heart weeps and breaks for the black community in America; weeps and breaks for my brothers and sisters. My heart weeps and breaks because I’ll never fully understand the pain of living in a place where I have to scream to be heard, and even then.
Have my scream ignored.

“I can’t breathe.”

Why did it have to be filmed for us to believe?
Why does racism need to be filmed to get our attention?

I am obviously white. I grew up in a predominately white town, went to a predominately white college, have gone to predominately white churches, and am generally surrounded by a predominately white population.
So no. I don’t understand what it’s like to be a person of color or a minority. I will never understand what that feels like. My ignorance of systematic racism and how deeply it affects people of color in my life might be justified.

BUT I’m 27 years old now. I’m an adult that could have educated herself and moved away from the excuse of “predominately white.”  My pride didn’t want me to admit that I was too lazy to educate myself enough to do something, to stop using the literal excuse of “I’m not racist, I’m just stupid.” Which honestly isn’t better. Like, what a sad brag. “I’m not racist, I’m just stupid” like that absolves me of taking ownership over the fact that I have not done enough to stand up for the people of color around me. I don’t want to say ignorant, insensitive things and hurt the people of color in my life.

Why didn’t we, the white Christian population of America believe and make our stand alongside people of color years ago? Regardless of religious or financial background? I have seen so many posts from my Christian friends on social media saying things like “Only Jesus can fix the sin/racism issue in America! Only Jesus can change people’s hearts!” And that’s true. I agree that only Jesus has the power to change hearts completely.

But don’t use Jesus as a cop out so you can continue to do nothing.

Did you know that there have been peaceful protests in Minneapolis every day since George Floyd’s death? Every single day people are still going out to protest systematic racism and mistreatment of people of color in our nation. Every single day there are protests without riots and looting that the media may not be reporting. Every day in so many cities there are still protests going on to bring awareness and an end to racism in America. Which means we Christians can still be making our stand.

So maybe we as the white church in America just need to be honest with ourselves:
We like being ignorant because it means we have an excuse to not do something and stay in our comfort zones. We like saying that we care about minorities and we want to be multi-ethnic, multi-cultural churches because it feels good to say. But actually doing something to make that happen? Well, that’s not always very comfortable, is it?
So maybe we shouldn’t say we want to be a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural church and then brush off the feelings and concerns expressed by the (usually only one) family/person of color in our predominantly white churches. Maybe we shouldn’t say we care about minorities and then say nothing about how mistreated they are in our nation.

We don’t pray for revival for years and years and years and when the opportunity comes to change and revive your own heart say “No, change is hard, and I meant change OTHER people’s hearts, Lord. THEY need revival; not me.”

Newsflash: You absolutely do need revival in your own heart.

And your neighbor? They need revival in their heart too. But you can’t bring revival to someone else’s life if you don’t have it in your own. You can only give from what you have. Let me be clear: You’re not completely wrong. You can’t change people’s hearts on your own. It’s a battle that as a human being, you cannot win. By just posting a blog or sharing something on social media, or by having a conversation where I say all the right things, I still can’t change a heart.

The battle for changed hearts? That battle belongs to Lord, but I will fight with Him the best ways I can. I can’t claim that I want to be the mouthpiece of God and refuse to speak in times like these. I can’t claim that I want to be His hands and feet and do nothing in times like these. Faith without works is dead. Our prayers for God to change the hearts of people in our nation and topple systematic racism are good. But God calls us to do more than just pray.

I read a book a few weeks ago called “The Color of Water: A Black Man’s Tribute to His White Mother” by James McBride. It’s a biographical book written about a black man growing up in an interracial family in Harlem in the 1960. His father was black and from North Carolina, and his mother was a white, Jewish immigrant from Poland. He recalls a conversation he had with his mother: “Am I black or white?” “You’re a human being.” “But is God black or white?” “God doesn’t have a color. He’s the color of water.”

If God is the color of water, then wash me out Lord. Wash out everything in me that says “it’s easier to remain in the dark”, that it’s easier to keep living comfortably, to not grow, to not change. Ignorance really is bliss, so please Lord. Wash out my ignorance.
And wash out my brothers and sisters, Lord. Saturate Your bride in Your spirit, and wash out our prejudice and hate and unloving, uncompassionate spirits. Bathe us with Your love and truth, and wash out racism (systematic or blatant) and let us see each other as people, all made in the image of God.

“God looked on all that He had made, and saw that it was good.” (Genesis 1:31)

“It was good.“

God created different skin tones to be celebrated and show us a greater, more perfect reflection of His image. Satan and sinful humans decided that our differences were meant to be despised and used against each other. But God takes what the enemy means for evil; means to cause division, disunity, and distrust, and He turns it back for good. He will take this evil and use it to break new ground for a more unified, more understanding, and more peaceful nation. He works all things for His good.

For His good. Our God is good. He does not stand on the side of injustice, but justice. He does not stand on the side of ignorance, but of truth. He does not stand of the side of hate, but of love.

Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.
(1 John 4:11-12, 16-17, 19-20)

Love has actions.
Ask yourself: What does acting out in love look like? What is showing love? 
At the very least, you would stand and fight for yourself, so please. Stand and fight for your black neighbor now. My friends, my white brothers and sisters in Christ, please. Is this really how we want Jesus to be shown and thought of in our country right now?

Will we be fools and scoundrels? Destroying the poor and needy, even when their pleas are just? Spreading error concerning the Lord and His nature and heart for the oppressed? Or will we instead be those who show justice, are a refuge, changing eyes to see and ears to hear? Will we know and understand, and then be fluent and clear? Will we make noble deeds and stand by them?

Will we stand for truth and justice? Will we speak speak the pleas of those in need? Will we stand with Jesus?

Jesus didn’t die and pay with His precious blood for people from every tribe, tongue, and nation for His church to look away and make excuses to not stand with people of color. We need to love with our words, love with our prayers, and love with our actions too.
What does acting out love look like to you?

Let’s show love with our words and actions, let’s be humble before the Lord, and let’s see revival together.