10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;
11 not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord;
12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;
13 distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.
We can examine our own hearts and see if we are walking in these admonitions. If we are full of the love of Christ, then that will result in a shift in our thinking - from despair to hope, from tension to peace, from needing answers to finding wisdom. But, in our human condition, we can default to hopelessness and inner turmoil. We can easily grow pessimistic, when God's Word can fill us with His hope. He can enable us to shift our thinking to focus on His blessings and His presence.
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We are called to be participants in spreading hope to the people with whom we come in contact. Where there is desperation and disappointment, we can have Christ's hope. Romans 15 says:
13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
14 Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another.
Even though it will be a long road back, the city of Baltimore and its citizens are attempting to put the violence behind them after a turbulent few days after the death of Freddie Gray, who died while in police custody. Charges have been filed against 6 people in the case, and the curfew in the city has been lifted.
Smaller protests are continuing downtown, and cleanup efforts have been going on since early last week, when the rioting reached its peak. A CBS Baltimore report says that one group that was involved in a cleanup effort saw its volunteer list morph from a handful of people to hundreds looking to give back to the city.
One of this past weekend’s street sweeps was at the St. Francis Community Center in Reservoir Hill, just blocks away from one of the most destructive riots. Organizer Torbin Green's volunteer list has included students, Marines and some Baltimore businesses who are planting gardens, picking up trash and removing brush and debris. He turned to social media to get the word out.
So the external cleanup is underway, and apparently so is the internal one - the type of cleanup of human hearts that can result in lasting change in a city.
Religious leaders have been visible in the midst of the crisis, including the scene of clergy marching arm-in-arm through the city. CBS12.com reported on the $16 million future senior housing complex and community center that were still under construction and went up in flames Monday during the riots, even though authorities had said that it was unclear whether that fire was related to riots across the city.
The TV station website quoted a CNN interview wih Rev. Donte Hickman whose church was building the senior center. He said, "It hurts my heart." He added that he has faith and that he sees "revival" and "sees an opportunity to rebuild from the ashes."
So, here you have a minister who was seeing through spiritual eyes. Staring into a blazing fire, he saw revival. Church leaders who have been intervening in the situation in the city admit there are problems, but they see hope.
Jeff Naber of the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team is quoted on the BillyGraham.org website as saying, "A lot of turmoil. A lot of hurting people,” adding, “I’ve never seen anything like it and I’ve been around awhile.”
“People want to get ‘it’ out,” Naber said. “And the ‘it’ is the frustration and anger they’ve seen here over and over again.” The report says that as people vent and share their experiences with the chaplains, they’ve “miraculously” seen God work on their hearts. Naber said, “We’ve seen the Holy Spirit penetrate through that hard shell, right to their heart...in a way only God can do.”
A report on the Christian Today website stated:
Religious leaders have been among the first to call for peace amid rising tensions, and churches have been opening their doors to those seeking refuge. "Our role is to be a moral voice at this time," Rev Heber Brown, pastor of Pleasant Hope Baptist Church, told the Huffington Post.The article reports that another minister, Rev. DeVante Mills, said the church he attended was welcoming those involved in the violence to relax and receive counseling. He said, "The body of Christ said stand bold in situations like this. I think the pivotal role we have is keeping peace." [sic]
In reading over the various reports, there are several themes that emerge for me, relative to spiritual ideas:
First of all, where there is desperation, there can be hope. Church leaders are involved in trying to bring hope to people. Where there are concerns over justice-related issues, where you see people weighed down by some of the concerns of our communities, Jesus can help bring about a shift in thinking - that can bring hope and provide the atmosphere for right thinking to result in corrective action.
Next, where there is tension and conflict, there can be peace. The tension in Baltimore, in Charleston, in Ferguson, and other cities in the aftermath of conflicts involving citizens and law enforcement officers, is apparently deeply rooted, and these incidents become a flash point to set ablaze the frustration that people are experiencing. We need the peace of God in our communities, and His people can be effective ambassadors to model that peace.
Finally, when we need answers, there can be wisdom. There are many dilemmas that are confronting our communities. But, as we pray and seek God for His wisdom, I believe He will provide Biblically-based solutions. We have to make ourselves available to be conduits of that wisdom. We have to be involved - in prayer, in conversation, in strategization perhaps. We recognize that the greatest source of wisdom and instruction in the universe - the One who created it all - has offered us His insight and His power.
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