“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of darkness and of spiritual wickedness in high places.”
(Ephesians 6:12)
As I further reflect on this quote from the Bible, it continues to ring true in a modern world. As a society, we struggle with issues of the mind and soul. Over time, our judgements in terms of empathy, emotions, and morality have become extremely skewed. Terms like “Fake News” or “Alternative News” are thrown out like it’s gospel or absolute Truth. As a result, people do not know who to trust or what to believe, and it is every man for themselves. Because of fear, anger, and distrust of the “other,” many fail to recognize what is “good”, because “good” has become relative to what political party you support. And our leaders, the ones in government that we put in high positions are the ones poisoning the well, feeding the flame for an already divided country.
My friends, “goodness” is not, and should not be a relative concept. Whenever trying to determine if something or someone is good, ask yourself these questions. Has the person thing in question actively hurt anyone? Has it taken away or disenfranchised anyone for personal gain? Have the actions in question affected someone’s life in a negative way, or used for the wrong intentions? Chances are that if the answers to all three of these questions are a resounding “NO”, then the action in question is at least leaning towards good. Conversely, if someone is trying to help, lift up, and change one’s life for the betterment of all, DO NOT block their path. It may not be up to your personal comfortability or it may not be something you agree with, but preventing good deeds because of a fear of change is the absence of goodness. Above all, do not allow the nonsense of misinformation to take away all of your senses, especially your sense of judgement. God has instilled in you the ability to judge right from wrong and good from bad, and this is one of the most important gifts He gave to you. Do not let lies, misinformation, and bad intentions steer you away from God’s will gift.
We must remember that the true definition of Christianity is community as opposed to tribe. Tribes are exclusive, and encourage an “us vs. them”, every man for themselves mentality. As we can see through the pandemic, this is a toxic way for society to run. Many people are lost, confused, and disheartened by the current state of the world. People have no clue of the magnitude of problems that lie ahead, so they make decisions based on limited information, or misinformation that they can access. Some even gravitate towards groups or news that validate their pain, fears, and hatred. As Christians, we cannot react to confusion, fear, and anger with shame, it will only worsen the problem. Instead we must react with kindness; through kindness we can become the leaders in building a global community. As members of a global community, we must accept others who may have different beliefs or come from a different part of the world. We must lift each other up, take care of, and give to those in need, even if there is no personal gain to come of it. And we must empathize with the pain and struggles of others, even if you are struggling too. Only then can the storm pass, and we can finally build, grow, and progress as a community.
For now, I encourage you to just continue to pray and to be steadfast in your devotion to each other and to God. Pray for your friends and family, but pray for the “other” as well, the strangers you don’t know or fail to understand. Believe it or not, at this moment, they are part of your community as well. We must stop wishing for the demise of the “other”, for if one of us suffers, we all suffer; if one of us succeeds, we all succeed. We all need to succeed; we have been through enough challenges and obstacles to last a lifetime in this year alone and failure is not an option. But I have faith that in times of great tumult that community will rise above all. Make choices towards goodness, make choices towards community, and make choices towards God, for these will sustain us through the storm.