Saturday, January 24, 2009

I am afraid, Lord

I am afraid, Lord. In the last six months, I have been called racist just because I speak with a Southern drawl. I have been called a bigot because of political differences that have nothing to do with race, but only because I dared to express my political preference.

I am afraid, Lord, that socialized medicine will put me out of work like it did for thousands of Canadian nurses years ago who fled here looking for work. How will I feed my kids, Lord? Where will I have to go?

I am afraid, Lord, that I will no longer be able to afford my home, but that there will be no help for me because of the color of my skin and my college degree.

I am afraid, Lord, because it seems that no one can see the possibility, indeed probability, that this man will not be able to keep so many promises to so many people. Will the adoring masses turn ugly when they don't get what they want?

I am afraid, Lord, that this is the end of the Puritan work ethic and the beginning of expecting government to do it all. I feel like everything my family came here to build has been rejected. I feel like the entire country has slapped me and all my ancestors in the face.

I am afraid, Lord, that I have to be a hyphenated-American to have any voice. I feel unwanted in my own country. I don't have a country of origin other than this one. Isn't being just an American isn't enough?

I am afraid, Lord, that our country will only be more divided as small groups scrabble for what they believe is their entitlement - that we will become not a more unified people, but a splintered, broken, shattered shell of a once great nation.

I am afraid, Lord, and only You can provide the peace. I know others think that this man is our hope, but You, Lord, are my only hope. In my head, I know that you are in control, but in my heart, the world seems very out of control and chaotic right now. And there seems to be no place in it for me.

Help, Abba Father.
Are you listening?

--Debbie

2 comments:

  1. Precious Creator who loves us all, help Debbie to assuage her fears and find, growing in their place, hope. May she find that the inclusion of more people at the table doesn't mean that there won't be room for her. In her fears of exclusion, may she find some understanding of what it might be like to be excluded for hundreds of years, despite hard-working ancestors who also built this nation. Please let us create places for all of us at God's table, with tolerance, warmth, and generosity, especially those who disagree with us. Let us ensure that each person, equally beloved by God, has education, opportunities for satisfying, decent-paying work, and dignity.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Debbie - Please hear this prayer:
    We are going to be just fine. God hears your prayers, and so do the rest of us. Please know, understand, and embrace that there IS a place for all of us at God's table. There always has been and now we have to act on it. Now, there is an opportunity for us to pull up an extra chair to make room for those who did not feel welcome to the Banquet.

    This is not the end of the Puritan work ethic. Our new President has said many times, "The government cannot do everything." There are many opportunities for helping each other. In helping others, we help ourselves. You don't have to be a hyphenated American. Just being an American will do - for all of us.

    Get rid of the fear. I voted in hope and love and will live in hope and love. For you. For me. For all Americans. For the World.

    That's what I believe God wants.

    Amen.

    ReplyDelete