Act justly. Love mercy. Walk humbly.

(intro from Eric)

Today's post comes happily from the oft-underheard voices of a couple of our team teenagers.  I suppose one of the should-be-expected effects of having a team with multiple teenagers is that they grow in independence.  Meaning they are doing things which you're not even aware of (me being their teammate, not parent).  Like writing a blog.  Together.  Awesome.

Ella Sund and Matea Watts write together on "Our African Home", and we wanted to repost their recent post "Act justly. Love mercy. Walk humbly."  It's a joy to watch them wrestling with current events from their unique perspective as third-culture kids who have grown up in Africa.  Even more so, it's a joy to see them approaching these questions from the perspective as children of God, loved and adopted by "Data wa twese" (Kirundi for "the Father of us all").

On similar themes, Serge leadership has posted this blog on Seeking Justice Together.

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(from Ella Sund and Matea Watts)

Black lives matter. They always have. They always will.

I wish that I could write a poem, something deep and profound that makes people long for change and justice. But as I’m sitting here now, I’m speechless over the brokenness of my country and the pain of my black brothers and sisters that has been going on for far too long. We know that this is a mess, and it is far from enough. But we cannot stay silent.

What did we do to be born with white skin? Nothing, we had no control. George Floyd, Trayvon Martin, Amaud Arbery, and so, so many more had no control. Yet their lives were taken for it. They were given injustice while we were given privilege. And even though we did not ask for this privilege, we must use it for change. 

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that.” -Martin Luther King Jr.

In the community that we were raised in, we were surrounded by Black people. They were our neighbors, our classmates, our friends, our siblings. People we care for, people we love, and people that show the same Jesus-love back to us. It is earth-shattering to me that someone would ever think that they were less than ANYONE else. We are all created in God’s image. Everyone deserves the same respect, the same love, the same grace that we would want shown to us, because that’s what Jesus tells us to do. Jesus never once showed bias. He loved each of His children equally. 

Romans 2:11 – For God shows no partiality. 

God acted justly, loved mercy, and walked humbly. That is exactly what He calls us to do not just right now, but always.

I’ve felt so helpless these past few weeks. I’m a white, teenage female. What can I do?

I can listen. I can repent. I can educate myself. I can have tough conversations with my family and my friends. I can love. I can humble myself. I can stand firm in the truth. I can work to stand up against racism every day. I am young, but that gives me all the more time to make a difference.

Pray. It is so powerful, more than we know. “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” Pray for all the people that aren’t being shown love from others on this earth. Pray to be able to show love, and that one day, we would be seen as equal in this land, as we will be before the throne of God.

We will make mistakes. We will never truly understand.

But we stand with you, and we love you.