I've been watching/reading others' reactions all week, as well as
having a discussion or two myself, and I think I'm seeing a glimpse of what God intended (Psalm 133:1) through this whole situation. I can't help but notice that every
one of us seems to see this entire thing -- from the night in question to the verdict and beyond -- from a perspective borne out of our own
experiences (or lack thereof) right up to our current places in life, and the biases that have
resulted from them.
I get this; it only makes sense. What makes me sad is how unwilling we usually are to meet in the middle. For example, I just finished watching Obama's statement; and, I have to say that this is the first time I saw him as something more than just another politician. I thought it was really good. Yet, I have already seen one person express that it was divisive and not healing. I literally don't understand that, but there it is. My first thought is that this person (older, White woman) just doesn't get it (i.e., no one is making this a race issue - it already is a race issue, and you either get that or you don't); but, this is her perspective, and it really is not any less valid than mine.
The things is, if we all could discuss things calmly, respectfully, and humbly -- truly listening to each other's perspectives -- we could see different points of view, gain perspective as they say, and truly become the unified family God intended. I mean, just try to imagine what kind of world we could make for ourselves if we brought all our different pieces to the table and put them together.
If only we didn't find this so hard to do (Proverbs 18:2)....
I get this; it only makes sense. What makes me sad is how unwilling we usually are to meet in the middle. For example, I just finished watching Obama's statement; and, I have to say that this is the first time I saw him as something more than just another politician. I thought it was really good. Yet, I have already seen one person express that it was divisive and not healing. I literally don't understand that, but there it is. My first thought is that this person (older, White woman) just doesn't get it (i.e., no one is making this a race issue - it already is a race issue, and you either get that or you don't); but, this is her perspective, and it really is not any less valid than mine.
The things is, if we all could discuss things calmly, respectfully, and humbly -- truly listening to each other's perspectives -- we could see different points of view, gain perspective as they say, and truly become the unified family God intended. I mean, just try to imagine what kind of world we could make for ourselves if we brought all our different pieces to the table and put them together.
If only we didn't find this so hard to do (Proverbs 18:2)....
