As I sit here on lunch today reading Ann Voskamp's blog "To the Nations and to the people of the cross, all about the 21 "Christian" men who lost their lives to ISIS this week because of their illusions of the cross, I had a strange thought roll around my head. While as heart wrenching as this act of terror is, my mind seems to keep going back to the thought of what they are doing to young the girls. The rape and selling into sex trade. I guess maybe because I have a teenage daughter of my own this issue hits a little more close to home for me. As a mom I want to protect her. But ultimately I know only the Love of the Cross can. I fail in comparison in what the power of God can do.
I was thinking back to my younger days, a mere 20 something working 3rd shift, to a conversation that seems to keep coming back to me. I have often thought about the conversation but it became more often during the chaos of Ferguson Missouri. The gentleman I had the conversation with was trying to justify that it was ok to take what was not rightfully yours. I didn't understand this or his argument at this frustrated him to the point of saying to me "you won't ever understand because you didn't grow up on the other side of the tracks." I will admit yes I am middle class white America. In my naiveté I didn't really argue. But as the years have passed and I have thought about that statement I have to come to know this much. While I never went to bed hungry and I had few nicer things in life and if finances were tight us kids didn't know about. (Boy how I wish I could say that about my own household and daughter, working on that). The argument I should have made was this. We didn't live in want because I had a Dad that went to work bare minimum of 10 hours a day in all kinds of weather schlepping boxes. He came exhausted. My Momma worked in a factory for a number of years making vacuums, she babysat and then later started cleaning other people's houses. My parents worked hard to provide a living for us. While I know "the other side of the tracks" seems to go without a Father in a lot of homes that still to me doesn't "earn" you the right to take what isn't yours. Whether it is food from a store, merchandise or someone else's innocence.
This really bothers me. I know that there isn't the same opportunity. But what is the saying "make opportunity." I remember watching the destruction in New Orleans during the hurricane thinking why on earth would a person go into a store and drag out a television and five or six pair of shoes in that mess and why on earth would you think it is ok to do that?
I have seen with my own eyes people take stuff. Whether it was the young man in the check out line that tried to quietly take a stick of gum out of the package then casually put the wrapper back and tuck it all back together so it looked like the piece wasn't missing. To the young lady in the Kohls who came out of the dressing room with a whole outfit on under her clothing. Why....do you really need that piece of gum so badly you can't spend the $1 to buy it? Do you really need that new outfit that badly that you steal it? Maybe it is the thrill to see if you can get away with it? Would the people you are trying to impress with clothes really care for you as an individual if they new you stole them?
What about the innocence? What about when some 50 year old man rapes a 12 year old girl just because he needs release. This one I just don't get. This too is stealing. You are taking something that is not yours. Even the man that won't just take no for an answer and keeps pushing until you finally shut and give in just because you don't want to fight about it anymore. I have been there and truthfully it isn't a whole lot different. It is taking something that isn't being offered. Even if you pay for it you are still stealing. You are stealing the dignity of the girl you just paid for for a mere moment of enjoyment. The more subtle one. The young girls and women that offer it up just get love. This can fall into that category as well. Ladies if you have to give it to get what you want let me tell you, you will end up empty handed and hurt. Rob Bell got it right when he said "this is always about that." We are driven by a sexual appetite. So skewed and so distorted. The heart longs for oneness and the only time we feel oneness is during that act. But how sickening to have force someone, pay for someone or do it just because it is what you want.
This world as we know it seems to be unraveling at the seams. I know this is hitting some of us in America hard. But I often wonder in another week if we will just shut the news off because we are tired of hearing about it. Kind of like Ebola and the Measles that have fallen off the radar but a month or two ago we thought the whole earth would succumb to them. We in America are so fickle we just want the next thing even when it comes to our news.
I sure wish those of us in America that claim to be the Nation of the Cross would finally arise. We sure like to sit back and complain "oh they have taken God out of our schools" STAND UP and do something about it. Last time I checked though my daughter who wherever she steps is Holy and she walks the school halls everyday....God is there with her. There will come a day when none of us are allowed Bibles but are we taking time to hide the Word in our heart? No but we can tell you how many homeruns Babe Ruth hit to Right Field.
Earlier last week I had one of those moments of getting smacked with a 2x4 between my eyes. 1 Samuel 6 talks about when the Ark was being sent back to Israel. At one point of the journey 70 men were struck down for looking upon the Ark. I read what my study Bible had to say about it because I found it odd that everyone wasn't struck down and it said that "looked upon" meant they peered into or they looked at the Ark with irreverence. WOW....did the conviction of the Lord smack me. How often do I look upon the Lord with that same irreverence? Oh how I forget that He is a Holy God, a Just God. One that should be approached with trembling. Yet I run into his court like I, I own the place. Maybe I am alone in this.....but I to take from the temple. I eat the show bread like it is placed out there for me to snack on. When I realize that God should strike me down it makes me all the more grateful that He sees me through the blood, the perfect sacrifice of the Savior. It reminds me that I don't have to "take" from God but that God wants to give me good gifts, abundant gifts.
So I ask you are we ready? Are we ready to take on the task at hand. Are we ready to help win the war that is being waged between good and evil. Oh I how I hope you fight for the good. Because here is a little tip. I already know that good will triumph. And don't we all want to be on the winning team?
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