Where to begin?

This last week has been one of the most difficult in recent memory. First with the six month anniversary of my husband’s death last week. Followed by his thirty-ninth birthday this week. A profound sense of what is missing has surrounded my waking hours. Of opportunities missed. Of chances that are now gone.

And yet, mine is a tale of the conventional parts of life. Yes, my husband was taken from me at too young an age. However, it was from illness. A terrible part of life that all humans must face, which makes it no easier. Yet, it does put some perspective on what else I have to say.

All around us there are far too many stories of other lives lost. Of what is missing. Of opportunities missed. Of chances now gone.

Unlike my late husband, they were not taken by nature. They were taken by something far more insidious. They were struck down by the rotting, putrefying malice of white supremacy that continues to reside, alive and well, within not only the hearts and minds of so many, but also inside the very systems of livelihood and governance that we have built. Day by day, this cantankerous virus does far more damage than even the global pandemic taking the world by storm these many months. And what is worse, many millions continuously bury their heads in the sand and refuse to even admit that there is a problem.

I saw something last night that said we need to return to “Godly morals.” And yet, the poster is one whose head is in the sand along with the thousands and the millions.

For many have misunderstood that among the most defining qualities of our God, the God of Abraham and Isaac, the God who became flesh in Jesus Christ, is that our God is one who creates justice. Justice that lifts up the orphan and the widow. Justice that sides always, always with the oppressed and never the oppressor. Justice that aids the immigrant, alien, and refugee. Justice that is the necessary to make Love real, for without it, love is merely lip-service. I myself needed reminding of that only just last week by a wise professor.

So, where do we go from here?

Well, first, if any of us have sand in our mouth, we need to start spitting and repenting (which is probably most people who look like me at some point, if we’re honest with ourselves). Second, if we want to follow God and Christ, we must acknowledge the reality of what is really happening all around us. Hear voices. Name realities. Acknowledge accountability when it barely occurs. Then continue to seek real justice.

And last, we should seek Godly morals – ones that uphold the justice our God and our Lord Jesus Christ have already shown us. They are not an easy list. But that is the business about which we are meant to live.

It’s a new day. So let’s get to it.