Romans 12:2 (KJV) And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
As we meet these challenging and troublesome times, we need to understand the promises of God. There will be storms, and He has given us the strength to fight through the pain. He has promised us an internal force to withstand even the worst storms. There is no luck in the types of weather we have; our reaction to these different types is what determines our destiny. At the end of our lives, nothing will be determined by luck; God knew the plans for everyone of us before we were born.
Fighting among ourselves never solves anything, whether it’s who gets the last piece of cake, who gets dad’s guns from his estate, or which person won the presidential election. Unfortunately for us, not only do we have the wisdom to make decisions, we also have the ability to blame others for our short comings or things that never happened. When we let anger and bitterness cloud our relationships, the real possibility for joy doesn’t happen, and many of us loose our ability to love and to forgive. Doors are closed for years to any communication, gratitude, hope, and peace. With our national conditions, we’ve allowed the things of man to replace the will of God to the point that many people are choosing violence instead of peace to make changes.
The United States of America is a family of many ancestral countries, races, creeds, and religions. President-elect Joseph Biden is calling on all of us to come “home” to our roots, put aside our differences, and to begin again to re-build the republic our Founding Fathers fervently fought for. We need to move away from asking questions of “why” we have become so divided and angry to the “how” can can we work together to form a more equitable and fair “home” for all of us. We can no longer let our apathy towards the conditions of our fellow Americans to stop us from asking for God’s forgiveness and the healing of our nation. Miracles don’t just happen; they are found in trusting God.
Weakness and strength take the same amount of effort; the only thing that makes a difference is the road we choose to walk. America is facing the consequences of negligent caring, unbridled greed, and our need for power. Our lives depend on God’s love. I pray that all of us will choose a journey of hope rather than one of hate. We all have special talents inside of us; all we need do is find a way to let those talents out to better our country. The paths we take do not forge who we become; the obstacles we surmount together do.
Our words have created a great deal of pain and anger, and in pursuing selfish goals, fear has stamped out our humility. God knows we can all say the right words; all we need is the faith to say them to each other. However, faith is sometimes easier to preach about from the pulpit than to practice in everyday life. Many people think they have the power rather than God, and in so doing, they have forgotten how to say thank you to Him. Our gratitude will lead to forgiveness, and that forgiveness will lead to a better America.
All Americans need to take responsibility for their words, their actions, and their relationships through faith, redemption, and forgiveness. The horrible, unforgettable events of the past weeks can be forgiven, but we must all forgive and learn to accept forgiveness. With divine hope and the awesome power of God, we can choose a new and better path towards reconciliation. God’s love will shine through the wings of beautiful butterflies and the colors of rainbows will offer pure light into our darkened world. The things of man will fade, but God’s love never will.
Anna Hartt
