This afternoon, I was sitting at home with my youngest son Robert. In between Mickey Mouse cartoons and his need to eat seemingly every time I walk through the kitchen, I managed to watch some of the news pertaining to the situation in Ferguson, MO. I heard the state troop Captain Ronald Johnson's speech, and I must say that I was thoroughly impressed. At first, I thought it might have been a little cliche. You know, a racial situation and so a man similar to the folks involved is in charge. However, very shortly into his speech, I realized that there was something different about this man. Then, towards the end of his Q&A, he said something that put this entire situation into a whole new light for me. The follow is a transcript that I pulled off of the internet of Johnson's speech (so I apologize if there are any inaccurate quotes, but it's the best I could do)
JOHNSON: We know this isn't a perfect world. You say you have a barbershop. You know every barber isn't good. There's some bad barbers, okay?
CITIZENS: (chuckling)
JOHNSON: That's kind of the way of the world. But I tell you what: When you go home and you see your kids tonight... When I got home last night, my daughter sent me this. She says, "Daddy, were you scared?" And I said, "Just a little bit. And she said, "Dad, I want you to remember when Jesus asked Peter walk with him on the water," and she said, "When Peter got scared, Jesus picked him up and said, 'Have the faith.'" And I'm telling you today: We need to be just like Peter, 'cause I know we're scared, and I know we falling, but he's gonna pick us up, and he's gonna pick this community up.
I have to admit that the pastor Christian inside of me almost wanted to stand up and praise this man as if he was the second coming of John the Baptist. To think that during this most tenuous of times, that a man and his family would look to Christ (and him alone) gave me hope for this situation. It also made me think about things completely differently.
I'll admit it, I'm a racist. However, so are you. When I look at someone, I see color. I'm sorry, but when I'm describing someone to another person, I start with ethnicity. It's the way I was raised, and it's the most obvious qualifier for people of my generation. I thought to myself during Johnson's comments about the apostle Paul. You see, Paul saw ethnicity and he saw backgrounds, but all that he really saw was people in need of Jesus. He saw opportunities to proclaim the gospel. It didn't matter if you were Jew or Gentile, Roman or under a different authority. The bottom line is that Paul called all people to (as John's daughter put it, "Have the faith").
I see color. I see black, white, Hispanic, Asian, and Middle Eastern. However, I also see the gospel. I see everyone as one of two types of people: you've either heard or you hadn't (if you don't know what I'm talking about by now, then ask me; I would LOVE to talk to you about it).
I grew up in Mississippi. If you've ever spent any time there, then you know that that is enough said about my upbringing. I have race ingrained in my mind as somewhat of a defining factor. Don't get me wrong, it's not a discriminating factor, but it's still one I notice. Several months ago, my daughter Ashby was in the back seat of my truck while I was at the gas station getting some gas. A man pulled up and asked me for directions to an oil company. He was just starting a job and had no idea where he was heading. I told him where the company was located and sent him on his way. After I got back in my truck, Ashby asked me, "Daddy, what did that black man want?" It was at that moment that my impact about race began to sink in. My daughter (who at the time was 4) already understood the difference between black and white. It was as if the distinction of race was as important as the distinction between male and female.
In the aftermath of my own personal dilemma, I made a promise to myself: I was never going to teach my kids about race. I would be the proudest father in the world if my kids grew up not knowing the difference between races. Instead, I choose to focus my efforts on helping my children grow up as seeing everyone as children of God. I hope that my kids see everyone as someone in need the gospel, because that's who we all are. We are all children of God, made in His image, and are in need of the saving grace that is found only in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
I've got my personal opinions of Ferguson, MO and the events that have happened there. I think that there is fault to be found on both side of the argument. Law enforcement made mistakes. The people of the community made mistakes. Even the young man who was tragically (and needlessly) gunned down made a mistake. However, for each and every one of them and all of us, there is forgiveness to be found. And that forgiveness is what I want my children to take out into the world, and not the fact that race should be the dividing line.
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