Black History Month

05 February, 2013

It has been exactly 50 years since Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream" speech and 150 years since Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

The Civil Rights Movement was just half a century ago, and Obama, a black man, is now our President, working as the most influential man in the country, if not the world.

So, what does this mean? It means that change happens fast.

Where are our injustices today?
What will be the norm in another 50 years?
What will change - for better or worse?

Dr. Martin Luther King, the shepherd of the 1960’s movement, conveyed fearlessness and courage to withstand bomb threats, police dogs, and water hoses with quiet strength.

King once said that humans must overcome their fear of death in order to live a noble life. Is this why the US spends more on defense than the next ten countries combined? American culture teaches its citizens individualism and to ignore others. Are we not all one human race? If someone is hurting, how can I rest?

Jesus’ life can be summed up in one sentence:
Christians didn’t come to Earth to get anything;
everything we need is deeply rooted within us.

Dr. King is one of the few who truly understood this.

At a little known speech he gave to young people in California, he explained what he wanted said at his funeral. He told the crowd that he doesn’t want the pastor to mention his schooling or his wide array of awards. He doesn’t want a list of achievements. Instead, he simply wants the pastor to say that King was a man who loved.

King was a celebrity, yet he was as humble as can be.

He wasn’t afraid to speak the truth
To spread the love of God.
To stand out.

What does God call you to stand up for?
Where is your courage?

xoxo p