I seek reconciliation among people separated by fear and mistrust.
First, any pursuit of reconciliation comes out of all that dwelling I talked about earlier... out of my deepening relationship with Jesus and from my intentional presence in the city. One of my favorite pieces of scripture, 2 Corinthians 5:17-19:
I've worked with women coming out of situations of domestic violence. Children and mothers facing sexual abuse. Youth who are discriminated against because of their race. Immigrants taken advantage of in a foreign country. Ethnic minorities without a voice in their church congregation or Christian group. Social outcasts who don't fit in easily. People in poverty looking for some shreds of 'normal' life.
Each situation (and many more) breeds mistrust in all directions. Family, neighbors, friends, passers-by, teachers, preachers, and good-hearted volunteers-- all of us give in to temptations of fear and anger. It is complicated. It's messy. There are few clear answers. But what I know is that
I know it's hard to figure out what to say to the guy who brings up strange topics in conversation at the end of church. And I know that sometimes people fulfill the stereotypes and assumptions you have about them, whether it's about the kind of music they listen to or about their ability to hold a job. I know that people do terrible things and make horrible decisions. Sometimes they regret them. Sometimes they don't. Sometimes people change. Sometimes they surprise you. Sometimes they don't.
We live in a place and time filled with fear and filled with separation-- in families, churches, neighborhoods, cities, and nations. The narrative of God's story through Jesus is to bring together what has been separated. Both the "chosen" and the "others," brought together against the odds and definitely against popular opinion. That's good news that I have to be part of, if I'm going to have any hope of seeing God change the world.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God,who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.Nothing need separate us from God, and God desires that we not be separated from one other. From a young age, division bothered me. People not getting along irked me. Seeing black people live on one particular street in a small town didn't seem right. As I got older, I felt even more discontent and anger when Christians failed to treat one another civilly. Gradually, I started seeing past my temper and frustration and personal sense of justice, glimpsing God's sorrow at injustice and longing for reconciliation. I also gradually began to see fear at the root of broken relationships.
I've worked with women coming out of situations of domestic violence. Children and mothers facing sexual abuse. Youth who are discriminated against because of their race. Immigrants taken advantage of in a foreign country. Ethnic minorities without a voice in their church congregation or Christian group. Social outcasts who don't fit in easily. People in poverty looking for some shreds of 'normal' life.
Each situation (and many more) breeds mistrust in all directions. Family, neighbors, friends, passers-by, teachers, preachers, and good-hearted volunteers-- all of us give in to temptations of fear and anger. It is complicated. It's messy. There are few clear answers. But what I know is that
Jesus himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility... (Ephesians 2:15)So we need to pursue life accordingly.
I know it's hard to figure out what to say to the guy who brings up strange topics in conversation at the end of church. And I know that sometimes people fulfill the stereotypes and assumptions you have about them, whether it's about the kind of music they listen to or about their ability to hold a job. I know that people do terrible things and make horrible decisions. Sometimes they regret them. Sometimes they don't. Sometimes people change. Sometimes they surprise you. Sometimes they don't.
We live in a place and time filled with fear and filled with separation-- in families, churches, neighborhoods, cities, and nations. The narrative of God's story through Jesus is to bring together what has been separated. Both the "chosen" and the "others," brought together against the odds and definitely against popular opinion. That's good news that I have to be part of, if I'm going to have any hope of seeing God change the world.