WITNESS
by
Dr. Gale A. Ragan-Reid (November 30, 2015)
“Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you. Greet one another with an holy kiss. All the saints salute you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy ghost, be with you all. Amen” II Corinthians 13:11-14, KJV “An exhortation and prayer”].
Greetings In The Holy Name Of Christ Jesus,
My brothers and sisters, I listened to you, when every fighting word had to count for something as you fought to escape desperation, rashness, the pit of despair, uncertain death, all the spirits that took hold of you and tried to condemn you nevertheless you fought as a good soldier should the good fight not always unto death. For Jesus saves! I heard the squeals seemingly swell up inside of me for you in each terrorist attack during 15 days according to Wikipedia (2015), “from November 13th through November 27th, 2015, firstly mentioning the attack in Paris, France (Islamic State) and Marseilles, France (Islamic State); also, all the other places we must mention by name---call out prayers for each one, represent the church in the darkness in need of salvation for those known attacks and unknown attacks: Bosnia(lone wolf associated with the Salafi movement); Fotokol, Cameroon (suspected Boko Haram in Boko Haram insurgency); al-Arish, Egypt (Islamic State in Sinai insurgency); Giza, Egypt (Islamic State); Herzegovina (lone wolf associated with the Salafi movement); Baghdad, Iraq (Islamic State in Iraqi Civil War); Yusufiyah, Iraq (suspected Islamic State in Iraqi Civil War); Jerusalem, Israel (two Palestinian teens in Israeli-Palestinian conflict); Kiryat Gat, Israel (Palestinian lone wolf in Israeli-Palestinian conflict); Tel Aviv, Israel (lone wolf in Israeli-Palestinian conflict); Tripoli, Libya (unknown in Libyan Civil War); Bamako, Mali (Al Mourabitoun AQIM in Northern Mali conflict); Kano, Nigeria(suspected Boko Haram in the Boko Haram insurgency); Wogom, Niger (Boko Haram in Islamic insurgency in West Africa); Dakasoye, Nigeria (suspected Boko Haram in Boko Haram insurgency): Maiduguri, Nigeria (Islamic insurgency in West Africa); Yola, Nigeria (suspected Boko Haram in the Boko Haram insurgency); Maasim, Philippines (suspected New People's Army in CPP-NPA-NDF rebellion); Sarajevo (lone wolf associated with the Salafi movement); Tunis, Tunisia (Islamic State in insurgency in the Maghreb); Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States of America (USA) (lone wolf, Robert Lewis Dear); West Bank (Palestinian lone wolf in Israeli-Palestinian conflict); Beit Ummar, West Bank (Palestinian lone wolf in Israeli-Palestinian conflict); Gush Etzion Junction, West Bank (first attack, lone wolf in Israeli-Palestinian conflict and second attack, Palestinian lone wolf in Israeli-Palestinian conflict); Kfar Tapuach, West Bank (Palestinian lone wolf in Israeli-Palestinian conflict); Mount Hebron, West Bank (unknown in Israeli-Palestinian conflict); Route 443, West Bank (Palestinian lone wolf in Israeli-Palestinian conflict); South Hebron Hills, West Bank (Palestinian lone wolf in Israeli-Palestinian conflict)” [“And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold” St. Matthew 24:12, KJV “Signs of Christ's coming”]. I see the tears of despair opening up like flood gates only to flow not like a river or even a waterfall but as a steady stream as you wipe each tear away when you contemplate how you could reason away the blame for the war against planned parenthood, the war against guns and police brutality---is it one and the same war---our lost love for God---it must be someone else whose fault it is other than the murderer---the killer always gets the blame and the killer should get the blame but there must be some unforeseen circumstance that caused this darkness to loom above us to capture the souls of those who held up misguided hope for their futures leaving their unborn children behind---sending them back to God---someone else must be responsible for this travesty?
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How could an unborn fight her own battle to survive in this war---how could any of the children of the world fight this war for the unborn? What about the nine year-old child lured to his death only because he was the son of a gang member? How could a young child know that the one who lured him away was his murderer not his father's friend---there were so many of his father's friends---how could he discern the truth in any of them---how could this young child fight his own battle in this war? What about the 17 year-old child that held the knife dying from 16 bullet holes all over his body killed by a peace officer---both, in a mid-western state in America, Chicago, Illinois, USA? Yet, another child called to fight his own battle in this unfair war---how could his little knife save him [“But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you” St. John 5:42, KJV “Feeding of the five thousand”].
What about the six year-old little girl who shot herself with her mother's visitor's loaded gun that she found in the sofa in their living room, in the deep south, Atlanta, GA, USA [“Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law” Romans 13:10, KJV “Of uncharitable judgments”]? How could this young child fight her own battle to live when a trusted family friend brought in death---the gun that killed her---how could she fight the war [“And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed” Romans 13:11, KJV “Of uncharitable judgments”]? Of recent, one of my dearest kin told me, “I don't like to read about death [“Set me a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame” The Song Of Solomon 8:6, KJV “The church's love to Christ”].” I could hear how deep his feelings ran through his heart about death of love ones. I remember how he struggled in class in school when his grandmother died right after he spent his last summer in the country with her [“The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee” Jeremiah 31:3, KJV “Restoration of Israel”].
We are a suffering lot, are we not [“The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot” Psalms 16:5 “The salvation of God”]? Some of us, hold on to our sufferings so close and go from one suffering to the next suffering swelling our chest cavity until our broken
hearts can take no more---dying ourselves just from the thoughts of the deaths of loved ones. We must hold on carrying the blood-stained banner [“He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love” The Song Of Solomon 2:4, KJV “Love of Christ and his church”]. We must love God so we can withstand the pain and love ourselves and others in spite of all the pain, knowing what Jesus suffered, for us, to save us.
In closing, so we march but do we march for our love of God, for our love of Christ Jesus---search your hearts---what is your truth:
“The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the
works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk
honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in
chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on
the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the
lusts thereof” Romans 13:12-14, KJV “Of uncharitable judgments”.
The Lord be with you.
I know what you must feel deep in your hearts plagued by the spirit of division in your hearts, your homes, your neighborhoods, your communities and in the world-at-large just as Apostle Titus and Apostle Lucas could feel the divisiveness when they wrote to the Corinthians from Philippi, a city of Macedonia. We pray, “This, too shall pass, in the Name of Jesus. Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. In the precious and sweet Name Of Jesus. Amen.”
