I awoke this morning filled with gratitude for the trolley tour my family and I took through the city of St. Augustine yesterday. As soon as I awoke today, I felt words brewing; therefore, I grabbed my phone and began to write.
Thankfully, my phone was within reach because, too tired to place it on the charger last night, I rested it near my bed. I guess God knew I’d need it first thing this morning.:-)
I typed:
Thank You, God, for our trolley tour of St. Augustine on Oct. 4. The part of the tour through Lincolnville, formerly called “Little Africa,” has inspired this poem today:
Racism is degradation
A tearing down of the souls
And God’s mold
Of unity in the community.
Racism brings tears to my eyes
And with these cries
I pray for God’s love and light
To remove this unfortunate plight.
How on Earth did the color of a man’s skin
Become the pin
That would hold him down
And remove his crown?
From Emperor Haile Selassie’s message
To the United Nations General on Oct. 4, 1963
Bob Marley sings about the peace and the connection of humanity that needs to be:
“Until the color of a man’s skin
Is of no more significance
Than the color of his eyes
Me say war…”
Look around
There is war in so many ways
Glaring at us amidst our days
Division and war; where’s the peace?
Which of these languages do you speak?
Unity or separation?
Lord, please heal the segregation
Help stop the degradation.
We need a coming together of pure souls
Young and old
To live out Your mold
We need a centering of the heart
We need Your holy start.
Some may not call it racism
But it still shows up in many ways
For days and days
It’s enough to question
If we’re living with Your love and introspection.
All these years later, division is still ripping us apart
Lord, please help us mend our collective Heart
Which was created to be bright
Beating with Your Love & Light!
We need Your spirit
We need to hear it
We need to be respectable “friends”
For racism and division to end!
On You, Lord, we depend
In Christ’s Name, Amen.
After writing this poem and shifting to a Bible course I’m studying, I initially opened the Bible to a page where an envelope had been previously inserted. On that page, this verse greeted me:
“…Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss…” 2 Corinthians 13:11-12
These verses followed:
“All things came into being through Him, and without Him, not one thing came into being. What has come into being in Him was life, and the life was the light of all people…” John 1:3-4
If we all came into being through Him, aren’t we equal and equally loved by our Creator?
“…For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through Him God was pleased to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of His cross…” Colossians 1:19-20
Again, peace is the way
And for this, I will continue to pray!
Like Dr. King, I, too, have a dream
That we are all respected and seen
And that we live as one
In the likeness of God’s Beloved Son!
Did Jesus spew hateful, hurtful words?
No, but His Voice was still heard
So, it’s completely absurd
What’s floating out there by way of unkind words.
To adjust our behaviors
May we come to deeply know our Savior
May we all take a look within
And realize that God sent us ALL here to win
In Him…
It’s a spiritual must
A process to trust
For this world to work
According to God’s design
We must replace division with unity
And peace we will find!
Here, I’ll conclude my rhyme.:-)
Love & Blessings to all,
Penny
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