I am firmly apolitical as a pastor.
I love that my church family is culturally diverse, ethnically diverse, and politically diverse.
This is not a political blog post.
This is an intellectually-honest blog post free of spin or debates or soundbites.
Whether you are Republican, Democrat, Independent or whatever, let's put country above party and be Americans first:
We have a national emergency.
I don't claim to have all the answers.
My heart drops every time these headlines scream across my phone.
Here are the three things I do know:
- I am part of the problem.
- Christian leaders are also part of the problem.
- I can be part of the solution.
Yes, I am part of the problem.
I'm not proud of this and I feel shame.
My votes helped put voices into national leadership - in both parties - that have not solved this recurring, chronic problem.
Leaders that I voted for are silent or engage in pivoting when the very urgent, very dangerous rise of white nationalism is mentioned in television interviews.
I helped put some of those leaders into power.
I am ashamed of my voting record.
I am part of the problem.
Christian leaders are also part of the problem.
I am also ashamed of faith leaders -- Christian pastors -- who pursue photo-ops with politicians, choosing to cloak themselves with the vestiges of political power instead of cloaking themselves in the righteousness of Christ.
Biblical justice goes hand-in-hand with truth.
Racism, white nationalism, and white supremacy all make no sense if you are a Christian.
I literally worship a dark-skinned, Jewish savior from the Middle East.
I've been to Bethlehem and Jerusalem.
Jesus had brown skin.
Not only is racism sinful, it is remarkably stupid for anyone who identifies as a Christian.
And I can be part of the solution.
Solutions require prayer to God and speaking truth to power.
This is not about video games:
Great Britain has a population of 65 million.
The United States has a population of 330 million (5x larger).
Great Britain has video game revenues in excess of $5 billion.
The United States has video game revenues in excess of $25 billion (5x larger).
Great Britain's 2017 gun homicides: 31.
The United States' 2017 gun homicides: 14,542 (469x larger).
You cannot blame video games.
This is not about mental health:
If any of these gunmen had been brown or black, "mental health" wouldn't even be mentioned by politicians.
Listen, if one of the gunmen had been Muslim, we would see be seeing politicians quickly jumping on tv decrying terrorists.
It seems that when a violent gunman is white, politicians hide behind "the need for better mental health solutions."
This in itself is a problem of white privilege.
I can be part of the solution.
My God hears my prayers.
I can seek Him first in repentance, then in petition for His help.
Our fight is not against flesh and blood (see Ephesians 6).
I can also be a voice for change.
Our generation cries out for a new direction.
It’s time for leaders to come together.
No cameras.
No grandstanding.
No politics.
Just come together and create a solution.
Solutions DO exist.
The solutions may not be perfect and may not make every group happy, but inaction is no longer acceptable.
If our leaders do not move beyond "thoughts and prayers" and political grandstanding, things will only grow darker.
I was a child of the 80's.
I remember the Cold War.
No shots were fired, but the tensions and effects were real.
Inaction in the face of these mass murders will slide our country into a new kind of Cold War... a Cold Civil War.
It's time to be brave.
It's time to repent.
And it's time for our all leaders to come together and take action.
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