God Bless America!

                The word of the day is rebellion.  It is so prevalent in our society right now that it cannot be avoided.  It seems that a rebellious spirit has overtaken our nation.  We, as a people, have decided that we must have our voices heard, especially if it is in disagreement with whatever is the subject of the day.

                The current debate over standing or kneeling for our national anthem at sporting events has been taken to such a ridiculous level, that it reminds me of the playground debates we had as children.  You remember the ones; my dad can beat up your dad.  My family has more money than your family.  I’m stronger than you.  I’m prettier than you.  Whatever the debate, we just had to make sure our opinion was heard.

                We have taken that frame of mind and twisted it so far that we have thrown away all respectful intentions in our life and embraced this rebellious spirit.  We insist on arguing about and fighting over anything that we disagree with.  People are so divided right now that we can’t see each other as God intended for us to be seen – out of a heart of love.

                Love is no longer evident in most sporting events.  It is difficult to locate in the political realm.  People are speaking words of hate and division simply for the sake of being heard.  We are fighting over respect and in turn are throwing respect out the window.  The fight is no longer about respecting the flag.  It is no longer over the hateful comments of our president.  The fight is over who can yell the loudest and who can give the sharpest jabs.  It’s all about ‘I’m right and you’re wrong.’

                Whether you agree with the professional athletes or not; whether you agree with the president or not, you have a God-given responsibility to respect your brother.  It is your duty to strive for unity among those in your community, county, state, and nation.  And what are we doing but the very opposite.

                Several years ago, I was teaching a class in the prison system and heard a common theme during every session.  These men were continuously talking about others respecting them.  They bragged about how if someone didn’t give them respect, they would take it.  They equated respect with fear.  So, one day I decided to break from the lesson plan and teach on respect.  Nobody in the room knew what the word respect meant.  I taught how respect meant putting someone else before yourself.  It meant listening to someone’s opinion even though you didn’t agree with them.  It meant that if there was only one piece of cake left, you should offer it first to the other person. These men did not have a clue.  Needless to say, after that session, they no longer talked about respect when they were in class.  

                Our society has adopted the same view.  We insist on receiving respect from others, whether we give it to them or not.  If we don’t get it, we think we have to take it.  That attitude is rooted in rebellion.  And we wonder why there is so much strife and dissension in our nation.  We have thrown the rulebook out the window, sewed the mouths of the peacemakers shut, and decided on our own that we are the only ones that are right.  We have taught that any authority figure that does not cater to our wants and needs should be done away with. 

Our children have learned these disrespectful attitudes from us.  Shame on us!  We constantly rail against the president, the boss, and the pastor and then wonder why our children rebel against us.  When we refuse to honor the set authority over us, we are in rebellion and are setting ourselves up for failure in every area of life.  Why are you not advancing on your job like you think you should be?  Because you are constantly complaining and issuing hollow threats against those that you are supposed to be answering to.  Sure, you are honey-sweet compliant to their face but when they walk away you’re cussing them under your breath.  You’re forever threatening to quit and ‘leave ‘em hangin’.

People, it’s time to grow up.  Can we be adults?  Can we show respect for each other?  If we can’t, then we as a people are in serious trouble.  If we can’t, our nation is doomed.

I understand folks have different reasons for not liking certain statues, songs, politicians, or ideals.  Let’s just shut up, get up, and move on.  Life is too short to turn it into a never-ending display of protest and rebellion.  So what if you and I disagree.  We’re still neighbors, going to work every day, shopping at the same grocery stores, and still paying bills.  So, if we can decide to move on past our disagreements and faults, we will see our schools, churches, and nation thrive one more time.  I say, God bless America!