A Birthday Recap, A Troubled Heart and A Glimpse of Hope
“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away”
I wrote this post a few days after my birthday, which was about three weeks ago. I’ve been trying to do a birthday recap but so much has happened since then that it just didn’t feel like the right time to post it. I’ve re-wrote it a few times since then and decided to share it today so here we go…
Who knew quarantine birthdays would actually be a thing in 2020? I have to admit, I think most people have had some of their best birthday yet during this season. The reason being that, we’ve all had to be creative in how we celebrate each other’s birthday.
In case you were not aware, I turned into a crazy plant lady in 2020. I had never taken care of a live plant before and thought I’d start with a palm tree. Before I knew it, I had accumulated more than 10 plants. Kevin was gracious enough to get me a huge Fiddle Leaf plant on my birthday and it made me so happy. Later that day, I got dressed up and got the kids ready for us to go to my parents’ house to cut cake but as soon as I walked outside, I saw several cars lined up on my block. My family and friends came to surprise me, and it was truly epic!
I’m a key believer in celebrating birthdays because life is too short, and we are not promised tomorrow. Fast forward to a week later. We had a death in the family back home – we lost one of my uncles. There were a few other deaths that happened from close friends losing their loved ones and it was all just a bit much.
I can’t begin to stress the importance of praying for your family and friends and checking on them. You only have a glimpse into their life and don’t know the inner battles that they are fighting daily.
To add on to all that, the past few weeks have been an emotional roller coaster for a lot of people worldwide…we are in the middle of a global pandemic and racial pandemic. The world watched in horror the death of George Floyd. Prior to that we had Breonna Taylor (who was shot while she slept in her own home), Ahmaud Arbery (who was gunned down while jogging) and many, many, many more.
Something different happened after the death of George Floyd! It was like the whole world was set ablaze. The world has come together to protest and demand justice. It was been so encouraging to see how the protests happening in the US are motivating others around the world, especially young people, to protest the injustices happening in their own countries.
We obviously want better legislation in combating police brutality and a better justice system that has failed the American people over and over again by acquitting the perpetrators. When you take a deep look at the root cause of all this, it all comes back to racism. Racism against a minority group, or discrimination against anyone due to their nationality, religion, and so forth, are not just social issues, they are heart issues.
If you don’t realize that you are fighting a spiritual battle, you are literally waking up every day and going to war unprepared and unguarded, without your armor on. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." Ephesians 6:12, KJV
The spirit of racism is still well and alive today and it has been passed on from generation to generation, but we have a responsibility to not pass it on to the next generation. The most encouraging thing about the most recent protests is that, people from all walks of life and all races are standing together to say enough is enough. People are no longer afraid to speak up and for once, we are actually having an open and honest dialogue about it.
When we talk about racism, we are not just talking about a black vs white thing. Racism is simply one group of people thinking that they are superior to another and we see this play out in the caste system in India, tribalism in Africa, the Jews vs the Gentiles, etc.
When people counteract the #BlackLivesMatter slogan with #AllLivesMatter (this argument still baffles me), I say you are absolutely right in stating that all lives matter. HOWEVER, when we say that black lives matter, we are simply bringing to the forefront the issue that, for a very long time, black lives have not treated as if they matter. The #blacklivesmatter slogan simply means all lives matter INCLUDING ours.
While we advocate for proper training for police officers and demand justice for those that have been killed by police brutality, it is important that we ask God to search our own hearts and see if there’s any offensive way in us (Psalm 139:23-24). At the end of the day, you can’t extend love and compassion to another human being if your heart is not filled with it. To sum it all up, let’s pray for God’s protection over us. Let’s pray that God would soften our hearts and begin to renew our minds. He is love, he is the author of love, and love is what we are missing in this world.
And remember, at the end of it all, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death' or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Rev 21:4).
Outfit Deets:
Dress: Asos // Shoes - Zara // Bag - SheIn // Sunglasses - SassyJonesBoutique
Until next time, stay blessed and stay safe!
