I got mad.
And made a suggestion out of anger.
Churches weren’t doing enough.
It was based on some kid getting shot.
Another kid getting shot in a year when we were averaging two per week.
Young men cut down way too early.
Young men done in for doing something stupid.
But this particular one was different.
A little girl sitting in the back seat of a car.
Thinking about it still makes me mad.
Even though it was two years ago.
So I made a suggestion.
A long list of recommendations and reasons why churches were railing and they needed to step up.
And you guys let me know I was wrong.
That some churches were still doing the good work.
Still being the places they are supposed to be.
Sanctuary.
Succor.
And sustenance for the community.
Still, I let the anger simmer in my soul.
Particularly for big Churches perched on Interstates and being pretentious.
Because they didn’t open when the temperatures dropped below freezing.
They didn’t help the poor or the needy, except when news cameras were around.
They didn’t do for the community, except the community within their walls.
Failing.
Until now.
There are two massive buildings on the edge of Highways I call Fort God.
They look like red brick fortresses squatting on hills and overlooking all.
When the storms ripped through Little Rock, the one I was most bothered about, acted as a shelter for the people who had no homes.
They fed the workers. They collected donations for people trying to rebuild.
The chain sawed and picked up and stacked and scraped.
And they prayed.
Because you know how that communication and vibration and meditation can always make things better.
They stepped up.
They did the “job.”
And it wasn’t just them.
Closer to me, there is a new Church putting crews of cleaners into neighborhoods.
And a Church from Texas sending up trailers of relief and help.
In other words, for me at least, doing what Churches are supposed to do.
Tending to the needs of people.
Food. Water. Shelter. Soul.
There’s so much to do, we needed them all.
A natural disaster proved the best of mankind.
And just like I call out the bad, I need to highlight the good.
Because there needs to be more good.
The noticing of it and the doing of it.
And when all the debris is cleaned up and the scars begin to heal, my hope is those churches focus on another ongoing natural disaster.
Young men killing each other over stupid things.
My fear is the recovery from that may be too tough.
That the answers are too hard and the solutions too difficult to implement.
Though…
If I may suggest, that the reason Churches and community’s stepped up when the storm clouds moved out is because they had a clear mission objective.
The steps were outlined and defined and everybody shared a vision.
Cut the trees. Clean the mess. Feed the hungry. Shelter the Needy.
A vision that people could get behind and work toward and reach.
Maybe that’s what we need for the on going disaster.
Giving young men and women a clear mission objective.
And a vision behind it.
It’s just a suggestion.
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Redneck Vampire Alternate Ending
Thanks, your comments great. Lots of good people out there we forget sometimes.
Yet the govt. Keeps fighting to keep god out of our lives.
I'm not much of a church goer anymore. The 4 generation church I used to go to burned down few years ago. The people who had taken over the church said they'd rebuild. But took the insurance money bought a vacant church in nicer part of town and our old location now townhouses.
Shootings stupid. I've never understood rational behind it. Not that I don't own guns. I own several. But shooting a bunch of innocent kids?
Keep up the good work. G
I agree completely. Something that has bothered me for quite some time. Christian people who support bigotry, foul language, making jokes about others. (the former leader of the U.S.) and the people who support that. That has turned people away from church.
Congress who fails time and time again to ban assault weapons. It is the weapons that are readily available.
Churches DO need a clear vision of what each community needs. If not, they fail to provide ir meet needs of their community.