CHANGE – Part 1

Jesus turned and saw her.  “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.”  And the woman was healed at that moment. – Matthew 9:22

My heart hurts for this country and it’s people.  I have no beautiful words to put together to make this situation better for anyone.  I was born into this world as a white female.  Not by any choice of my own.  In being a white female, I’ve been born into an automatic privilege that isn’t given to people of color.  I don’t live my life with hatred in my heart.  I don’t live my life teaching my children to hate with their hearts.  However at the end of the day my skin is still white.  I still have a privilege that isn’t automatically given to others.  My heart breaks for what that means for people who were born with skin a different color than mine.

We talk in our home about loving all people no matter what color their skin or what lifestyle they live.  We talk about how God loves all people because he created each and every one of the people in his very own image.  I cannot understand how hatred can fill someone’s heart based solely on the color of someone’s skin.  It’s sickening actually.

I sat down to watch the news with my youngest daughter after George Floyd was killed.  I tried to explain the best that I could about how her being born white offers her something automatically.  We talked about privilege.  We talked about how the world doesn’t provide “fairness” to people born with brown or black skin.

Late last week I looked at images on the protests going on in Minnesota because of what happened to George Floyd.  Among the images was one of three small African American children in the middle of a street full of people.  They were scribbling on the road with chalk.  They were surrounded by black legs, brown legs, white legs, legs in jeans, legs in shorts….all these legs.  If you didn’t know the context around what was happening, it looked just like three sweet babies playing.  Instead it was people gathering in a neighborhood who were grieving, angry, sad, lonely, scared, exhausted……

Those babies reminded me of my babies.  No matter what – every day I wake up and want my children to be safe.  I want them to live lives full of joy and love.  That’s what all momma’s want for their babies.  It doesn’t matter what color skin they were born with.  We just want our babies to be safe, to laugh, and to love.

In the bible in Matthew 9 is a story about a synagogue leader who came to Jesus begging him to come and just touch his dead daughter.  He just knew that this man Jesus could bring her back to life with one touch of his hand.  This is a leader who wouldn’t have trusted Jesus – wouldn’t have liked what he was teaching – wouldn’t have wanted to be seen around him.  He didn’t care about any of that.  He just wanted Jesus to change his situation.  He wanted his daughter back.  He wanted to see her laugh, love, and to keep her safe.

There is also a story about a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years!  She had suffered for so long.  She searched out Jesus because she wanted to change her life.  She wanted to be healed.  She didn’t want to suffer.  And she knew if she just touched even the smallest piece of his cloak that would be enough.  That if she touched Jesus she would be able to live again – to laugh, love, and be safe – free from pain.

I want that for George Floyd.  I want Jesus to come in and take his hand and raise him up.  I want that for those sweet babies playing chalk in the street.  I want Jesus to walk by, for them to touch his cloak, and for them to never have to worry about hatred again.  I want that for all people of color.  To walk freely in this word – to laugh, love and be safe.

Change can still come, even without a miracle from Jesus, because he made people like you and me with hearts that aren’t filled with hate.  It starts with us.  We must be the hands and feet of Jesus.  Right now.

Today think about what is happening.  We must do something – right now.  We must start conversations in our homes.  We must pray.  We must do things that seem or feel uncomfortable.  We must change.

STUDY – Matthew 9 18-26 – NIV

¹⁸While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.” ¹⁹Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples.

²⁰Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. ²¹ She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.”

²²Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment.

²³When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, ²⁴he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. ²⁵After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. ²⁶News of this spread through all that region.