Maya Angelou has said, “Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future and renders the present inaccessible.”
Prejudice is an assumption that we make about someone without any truth to back it up. We can be prejudiced about race, gender, socioeconomic background, interests, religion, age, and just about anything.
In this clip from Better Together, Janice Gaines explains the differences between bias, discrimination, and prejudice and how one can easily lead to another. This “value system” that our country has created, though for the most part nuanced within the modern church, has led to the church being one of the most segregated places in our country.
As Christians, we understand innately that we were created by purpose for a purpose. Everything about ourselves—including our backgrounds—was carefully selected by God.
We were also designed by God to be lights of the world (Matthew 5:14). So let’s be those lights by living out God’s “value system” of loving and understanding those of different backgrounds, inviting them to our table in fellowship, getting to know them without having an agenda, and being an example to our country of how Christ’s love can bind together wounds left by racism, prejudice, and discrimination.
The truth is that for some, this may be uncomfortable at first. Maybe during your entire life you’ve only been around those who look, act, dress, and think like you. It begins with seeking Jesus in prayer and asking Him for eyes to see people through His point of view. When we start seeing others as God’s creation, as human beings uniquely made in His image, we can start breaking down barriers that society has constructed.
After you’ve prayed over it, start by going up to someone, extending a hand, and saying hello.
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Feb 21, 2020 at 08:00 AM