Race is a very loaded topic of conversation in America today. It has become political and divisive. On Sunday Jesse tackled this difficult issue and took us into the Word, to see that the Bible and the gospel indeed speak to this very issue. He quoted Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. who stated many decades ago that "it is appalling that the most segregated hour of Christian America is eleven o'clock on Sunday morning." It is a fact that we all naturally gravitate towards people who are like us. Wasn’t this just a simple observation of human nature? Wasn’t it so appalling to MLK only because he wanted to end segregation? If we are able to thrive separately and voluntarily, is there any benefit to integrating with people who are different from us? Despite the recent efforts to celebrate diversity in America, in the absence of potential economic, political, social, or personal gain, I believe the world’s answer to this question is no.

The Old and New testaments of the Bible are full of tensions and wars between races, nations, religions, and ethnicities. But in Revelations, “a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes, and peoples and languages” stand together to worship God. The gospel brings people together. People of all races. There is significant work and difficulty in interacting with others we seem to have nothing in common with. There may be language or cultural barriers. We may have nothing to talk about. We may not want to give what they may want from us. Outside of the Christian worldview, there is little to be gained from making ourselves vulnerable and venturing outside of our comfort zones.

Sunday we heard a call to action for the Christian church. The Bible tells us that it is important for us to work towards uniting God’s people together. It will help us to become outward oriented and compel us to humility, as we see the fallenness in ourselves and others and the glimpses of God’s glory reflected in others around us. I believe God uses all people, things, and circumstances around us as opportunities for our sanctification. It is up to us to recognize them as such and to engage for our own growth. When we shy away from these opportunities we will only see them as inconveniences or meaningless encounters at best, and will be missing out on the richness that God wants us to experience.

Our move to New Mexico was intentional in large part for its diversity and poverty. We also wanted our children to grow up in an environment where they would be exposed to friends and people of different races. We have experienced the benefit in the racial diversity that has met us since moving here. It doesn’t have to mean awkwardly seeking out those of other races or cultures. Maybe we simply need to be ready to open ourselves up when God brings people into our lives. Our son Eli’s closest preschool friend last year was an African American boy. There were many other children whose parents had more in common with us. Yet we invited this boy to our house to hang out and play. His dad came to drop him off and I had the chance to spend time with him, which was transformative for me. I heard his story--one that includes police shooting deaths of two of his family members, his own incarceration, and his humorous recounting of checking out at the store with police toys for his son who loves PAW Patrol. He didn’t need my editorial on his life story, I just listened and a friendship has formed. And it’s these experiences that propel us to pursue the “diversity with distinction without disparity” that Jesse called us to. May this be what we open our hearts to, our homes to, and our church to.