THIS IS OUR HOUSE!!!

I was just watching the movie PRIDE, about a young ‘African-American’ swim team that faced adversity, both racial and otherwise in the pursuit of their dream. ‘PRIDE’ starring Terrence Howard and the late great Bernie mac is a lovely movie which I fully recommend.  Early on in the movie there was a scene where a character was ridiculed, abused and ultimately beaten up and arrested for the ‘grievous’ crime of daring to splash his dark self in a white-dominated swim competition. Later on (and 10 years later in movie time) this same individual looks on in pain and incredulity as a group of youths he trains thoroughly shame themselves in a similar competition. And then joke about it all the way home like nothing happened.

This man fought and suffered for the right for blacks and whites to swim in the same pools and compete in the same events. The same right these youths were nonchalantly ridiculing by their attitude and irresponsibility. They didn’t appreciate the sacrifices that were made on their behalf. They failed to grasp the magnitude of their folly. They didn’t understand that only a few short years previously they wouldn’t have even survived a visit to such a place, not to talk of TOUCHING that water before we come to the taboo of actually competing in a race. Who born you?!

I was pained. I was pissed. And then I was ashamed.

I was ashamed because I realised I had more in common with those kids than I had at first realised. We all do.

We belittle or are underwhelmed by the efforts made by parents, guardians or whoever was responsible for whatever stones we stepped on to be in a position to read this post. We complained at what we perceived as injustices of not granting our childish whims and immature desires. We groaned at their discipline and bent rules to breaking point, because, of course, we knew better. Those of us now in positions where we are responsible for others are surely being reminded of and confronted by our folly.

We are ignorant of the ‘labours of our heroes past’ and the magnitude of the loss in the civil war that kept the seams of this country from ripping. We piously point our noses in the air and declare that we didn’t ask for this country, that it was ill-conceived from the beginning and so we do our parts in ensuring that the cancers of corruption, intolerance, bigotry, laziness, illiteracy and greed destroy what so many gave their lives to defend. We laugh at others’ misfortunes and make jest of events that should be an embarrassment to any sane people. With unjustifiable glibness we gloss over major cracks and ignore the screams of a suffering nation. Participation or silence, both are equally condemnable.

But wait, it gets worse.

We were made from dust. We were breathed upon with the breath of life and then we were. We decided that we had all the answers so we wandered so far off the point we had completely forgotten what the point was. Then we were given a second chance, a fresh start, an opportunity to do it all again but this time, do it right! But this wasn’t free. Oh no, it came at a price. A very steep price. A man had to take the punishment reserved for and deserved by everyone who ever lived, will live and is living now. Every stroke, scourge, curse, blow and nail had our names on it. He took it all so we wouldn’t have to. He did it even though we didn’t ask him to. And we certainly didn’t deserve this gift either. But a gift it is, being held out with eyes full of love and patience, and man, have we blown it big time.

We have despised the essence and purity of simple, honest fellowship with our redeemer and replaced it with ‘religion’. We have flooded ourselves with ‘church stuff’ while our lives, and by reflection, hearts, are corrupted and corroded. Christianity is becoming a joke because the ‘modern’ Christian has forgotten the pain, blood and tears that birthed the early church. We dilute the core of the gospel and introduce garbage into the sanctuary. We devote our lives to chasing ‘...all other things...’ and have compartmentalised the Kingdom. We have strayed FAR from the blueprint that Jesus and the apostles laid down. And for the most part we don’t even know it!

This is our house! If we watch it crumble all around us then expect to be hit by falling rubble.

Country, home or church, take responsibility for it!

THIS IS OUR HOUSE!

Have some pride in who you are, in where you’re from!

Nobody can come bully you in your own house unless you let them! We have to realise that what we ‘inherited’ didn’t just drop from the sky. We have to take responsibility and honour the memory of those that fought and gave so much that we may have what we are so cavalier with today. We have to fight, not just to keep what we were given, but to make it better, stronger, while staying true to the Spirit of its birth.

THIS IS OUR HOUSE!!!