Racism in America: "We Do Not Know What to Do, But Our Eyes Are On You." 2 Chronicles 20:12b

Here is what I know to be true about God’s love for ALL His children. That word “ALL” is key to understanding God’s heart.

Truth #1

God created all men and women in His image. When I look at my black brothers and sisters, I am looking at an image-bearer of their Father-God.

·         26 From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. Acts 17:26 

·         26 Then God said, "Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." 27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:26-27 

Truth #2

God does not discriminate no matter the race or the nation. One day, we will all gather round the throne together, every “nation, tribe, people” and worship the Lamb of God together. We should seek unity before Him that way here on earth. Below are just a few of the verses that have led me to this belief:

·        12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile-the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, Romans 10:12

·         19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Matthew 28:19 

·         9 After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice: "Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb." Revelation 7:9-10 

·         16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 

·         13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body-whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free-and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 1 Corinthians 12:13 

Truth #3

If God does not show favoritism, neither should I. I should not show prejudice to foreigners or people who are from a different race. At one time we were all foreigners, alienated from God by our own choices to sin, and He reached out to us through Jesus Christ and was inclusive instead of excluding us from His family. Jesus is our model for how to treat and love people different from us.

·         34 Then Peter began to speak: "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35 but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. Acts 10:34-35 

·         19 And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt. Deuteronomy 10:19 

·         8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, "Love your neighbor as yourself," you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. James 2:8-9 

·         21 I charge you, in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism. 1 Timothy 5:21 

·         11 For God does not show favoritism. Romans 2:11 

Truth #4

God is consistent in telling us to love our neighbors, even if they are different from us. None of His commandments to love has an exemption based on race.

·        34 "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. John 13:34 

·         24 Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly." John 7:24 

So how do we live out the truths of the Bible?

Going forward, we will each have to be in prayer about what God would have us do individually. I can only share some things He has had me do. Maybe one or two of these will help you know what God is telling you.

1.        Look around you. God has people in your life you can minister to. Is there a situation where you see prejudice or cliquishness? Start there. What can you do to reach out and be inclusive instead of exclusive? Years ago, I looked at my prayer group and realized we were all white. We had a wonderful woman of prayer at our church who was African American, so I asked her to join us. Do you see a lack of racial balance somewhere in your sphere?

2.       Speak with your eyes. I have had the privilege of teaching many young black men as undergraduates and in MBA programs. A few have shared with me that as they approach some white women in parking lots, the women avert their eyes. Candidly, the way I was brought up, I avert my eyes whether a strange man is white or black; however, I have changed. I now am intentional about looking black men in the eyes when I approach them, and I say, “God bless you.” In almost every case, the man says, “God bless you,” to me also. These exchanges in these troubled times have blessed me more than them.

3.       Challenge the status quo. God has placed you in strategic places. When I was a young, flighty, forgetful student at the University of Georgia in 1969, I forgot to send in my reservation for my dorm room for the next semester. I had planned to get an apartment with two friends, but at the last minute I had decided that with my poor organizational skills, that I needed to live on campus. I was assigned to my old hall, but I had no idea what roommate the Residence Hall staff had assigned me. When I walked down my hall on my way to my new room that semester, a couple of my neighbors grinningly had said, “Have you seen your new roommate?” or “Have you been to your room yet?” The Resident Assistant (RA), a friend of mine, had a smile on her face as she said, “After you meet your roommate, come to my room.” Something was definitely up. I opened my room and there was the loveliest, most gracious woman I had ever met. After a few years of teaching, she had returned to advance her education, and she was black. She had tried unsuccessfully to be admitted to the Honors Dorm, for which she amply qualified. I was her consolation prize as a roommate.  We had a pleasant, brief conversation, and I left to pay that visit to my Resident Assistant on my hall.

I had honestly not thought much about having a black roommate until the RA made some joking remarks. She concluded by telling me exactly how to fill out a form to be moved, which she assumed was a foregone conclusion. I told her I was fine where I was. I could tell this caused her great consternation.

Over the next few days, I was approached by the RA several more times, telling me that the residence hall administration wanted me to apply to be moved. I was offered a private room, which was a great temptation. And my roommate would have had a private room also.  Looking back, I am sure my roommate probably was hoping I would move on so she could study in peace. As a messy, loud teenager with friends dropping in at all hours, I was no prize as a roommate. After all, every roommate she had ever been assigned before me had applied to be moved, leaving her with the luxury of a private room. When I heard how every roommate had applied to move, I felt more than ever that it was wrong to move just because we were of different races, despite the pressure. I stayed.

All semester, I was called into offices and rooms for conferences with dorm moms and others telling me that this type of thing was just not acceptable and that I needed to apply to move. I don’t think it was coincidental that after I refused, I was falsely accused of missing the curfew by a minute when I was actually in within the time, and I was punished for it. The young man I dated told me that as long as I was in my current living arrangement, that he could not date me. My simple act of staying put was revealing prejudice in people I had never seen before.

The way the problem was resolved was that my roommate was admitted to the Honors Dorm, her longtime goal.  We kept up with each other for several years after college but, like most college friends, lost track when she returned to south Georgia. But I will always remember her. We were told we were the first mixed race roommates at UGA. Neither of us was particularly political or active in protests, but God had called us to make a statement to those around us by just holding fast to the spot where God had placed us.

Often when we hear a subtle racist comment or are exposed to racism, we are taken by surprise. Everything is going fine, and then a chance to stand up for one of God’s children or a race is dropped in our laps. I just share this to say to be ready the next time an opportunity takes you by surprise in a conversation.

Your actions matter right now more than ever before. Lecture with your life.

4.       Call or text your black friends that you truly have built a relationship with. They are going through a difficult time. Admit you are probably going to say or do the wrong thing in the text or call. Ask for their help and mainly just listen. The deaths of George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks have brought up a deep grief, an old grief. Some of the young black men I have talked to have said they are discouraged because unwarranted traffic stops and threats to their safety in white neighborhoods are realities that have been going on so long. They are at one moment hopeful and then the next moment hopeless that things will really change.

One thing I said to my friends of color was this: “I know I have blind spots. Help me. In what area of my life can I do better?”

5.       Consider posting a thoughtful message of love regarding race, if you are already active on social media. One young black woman told me  that she had seen endless posts by white women about how they could not get their hair done during the pandemic, but these same women were silent on the topic of race. Yes, there are some people of color who think white people have no right to say anything. For me, I think cutting off communication is worse. I don’t want to disengage out of fear.

6. Model inclusiveness of all races for your children and grandchildren. After my divorce, I moved back to my hometown, a suburb that was largely white. I did not realize the unintended consequence of that. When we had lived in the city of Atlanta, my black clients and friends often dropped by for lunch or a quick visit. Now that we were far beyond the perimeter, these friends and I met while I was downtown working and not in my home. No one wanted to fight the Atlanta traffic for a quick drop by. One day, my three year old asked me, “Why don’t we have any brown friends any more?”

Diversity was not lacking in my life, but it was in his. I had to be more intentional about reflecting inclusion now that I lived in a largely white suburb. The context of your life teaches children without words.

None of these responses may be right for you. These are just what God has presented to me as opportunities. Your response may be just a conversation with one person or a smile to a stranger. Whatever you do right now, do it prayerfully and with the motivation to serve God’s children, whom He loves very much.