Church I Need You

Today I spent a large part of my day on twitter finding comfort from words of people that I will never meet because I didn't feel like I could find them in my own community.

Today I sat across from a pastor and just desired for him to unabashedly tell me that I am valued, significant, and not pushed aside.

Today during church community group I shared that this election is hard. That I feel like the whole nation has given up and washed their hands of entire people groups. Today I asked to be listened to.

Church, I need you. I need you to ask how I am feeling and doing instead of me fighting to be heard.

Church, I need you. I need you to see the darkness and the pain. And I need you to step into it.

Church, I need you to stop being politically correct. Your brothers and sisters are in pain, they are hurting and afraid. I need you to get in the trenches and fight this with them, with me.

Church, I need you to care. To say that you care. To stop being silent. Tell me you care about me, about my family, about the hundreds of students I work with.

Church, today I needed you to fight for me. Because I felt so alone, exhausted, and abandoned. Today I needed arms around me.

Church, stop using the fact that God is in control as an excuse to ignore a dialogue that we need to have about racial reconciliation.

Church, stop telling me to put my trust in God. I have. I do. This is still hard. And this is not God. Hatred. Hateful statements. This is not God. Church I need you to start living out God.

Church I need you. Please. I need you to love. Me. My family. My friends. Our community. Our country. Our people. Church I need you to take Jesus commands to love one another seriously.