Certain symbols make us flinch. A few years back when a group camping near me and Mike displayed a white supremacist flag I was immediately taken aback. When they called their dog “Negro” and they were not Hispanic I became even more upset. I joked about it at the time but my true feelings were a sense of internal rage that they would be clinging to such hateful imagery. I was quite happy when they left even though the campsite where they had been was abandoned in such a messy state that vultures came to eat up all of the trash. My single thought was that the birds had missed a feast on the biggest garbage of all. Continue reading “Take It Down”
Author: Sharron Burnett
Martyrs for Love
It was Wednesday night and nine lovely people of faith had gathered together for Bible study in perhaps the most historic Black church in all of the United States. They were all remarkable individuals who had done so much with their lives and yet they often paused to learn about the Lord Whom they so loved above all else. They were pillars of their community of Charleston, South Carolina, filled with such kindness that when a stranger appeared they welcomed him into their circle. They had no fear. This was God’s house, a place of safety and refuge.
For an hour they read from their Bibles and spoke of the glory of God. He truly lived in their hearts. They were so busy but always Jesus Christ was at the very center of who they were. They were an interesting group whose ages spanned several decades. When they came together none of their differences mattered. They were all God’s children. Continue reading “Martyrs for Love”
To Serve and Protect
We often herald individuals who are willing to enter a fray to help someone who is in distress but the reality is that it can in fact be dangerous to render aid without knowing the full situation. My grandfather loved to speak of his experiences as a young man. One oft told tale was about a time that he was in a bar. Grandpa eventually became a teetotaler but in his youth he liked to imbibe after a long day of construction work. He didn’t marry until he was in his forties so going out for a little bit of the hair of the dog was a way to scare away his loneliness. He often sat by himself just enjoying the company of strangers and observing the goings on. Continue reading “To Serve and Protect”
I hear a number of people complaining that life is just not as good as it once was in the United States of America. The grumbling comes from liberals and conservatives alike. Some worry about the economic state of the average person and others are more concerned with the state of health of our laws. Still others ponder the moral fabric of society and see things that frighten them. I sometimes feel as though we all doth protest too much. I’ve been around for sixty six years and for the most part I think that we have never been better. We tend to stretch our concerns way out of proportion as though these are the worst of times. History tells a very different story. Continue reading
Fast Cars and Good Times
These days whenever someone mentions fast cars in movies virtually everyone instantly thinks of Fast and Furious. If you’re my age you may instead remember the car chase to end all car chases in Bullet with Steve McQueen. For true aficionados this was indeed the quintessential pioneer of that genre. Set in San Francisco the climactic scene lasts a full ten minutes while Steve McQueen drives a muscle car through the steep and winding streets. It was innovative for the times back in the nineteen sixties and it still holds its appeal even with the somewhat dated music and the iconic dress of that era. I remember seeing it in one of the downtown theaters when Mike and I were still dating. If memory serves me we saw it with one of his buddies from St. Thomas High School. On the big screen it was almost as good as IMAX. Continue reading “Fast Cars and Good Times”
