This post is one of several that are the result of a powerful inspiration I experienced during the 2016 Christmas Eve service at my church.
In the United States 2016 was a particularly contentious and frustrating election year. I don’t know anyone who actually liked either of the main candidates, and I know many who are terrified at what 2017 might bring. That would have been true no matter who won. We have a collective sense of impending doom. That is because we are at a turning point.
The truth is, for far too long we have depended on our government to determine our collective futures. No more. The government is patently incapable of doing what needs to be done. Government has throughout all of history, in all countries, been dedicated to serving the desires of the elite. It will never serve the needs of the masses. Time for us to take charge for ourselves.
Do not misunderstand me. I am not advocating civil disobedience. Far from it. Remember that Jesus said to “Give unto Caeser the things that are Caesar’s.” The meaning of that statement has been hotly debated for two thousand years. Pay your taxes and obey the laws, but your heart belongs to God. Do not expect the government to bring about peace, because peace does not serve the interests of the elite.
If every individual soldier refused to take up arms; if every military pilot refused to fly; if every tank commander or artilleryman refused to mount his weapon, how would our governments make war?
If you are a criminal who has committed an act of violence, what better time to get down on your knees, ask for forgiveness, and commit to a new direction? If you are an officer of the law faced with a violent situation, search for the peaceful solution first. Each and every one of us has a personal responsibility to seek the path to peace. If every individual commits to that, the government will be powerless to inflict violence.
