I was a in a heated discussion a week ago about voting, with a group of men I meet with every Saturday. I dare not get into the details of our meeting, because I want to make sure we continue conversing in the manner in which we do every week. There was something said that disturbed me in this meeting.
We were discussing the accountability of the church. In this discussion, I made the statement that the church failed miserably as it related to the last presidential election, because I believe the church went against its own beliefs when the topic of gay rights was on the table.
Let me just state this for the record: I am in no way against equality for all people. I believe everyone should be treated as human beings. I will also go on record saying I believe what the Bible says. I will also go on record saying I am a human being who makes mistakes just like anyone else, yet I still believe what the Bible says.
I personally believe the church lost a lot of ground when they knew the agenda of our current president did not match what thus says the Lord, yet they told their people to still go with his agenda. Now as I look at the candidates we have now, I am wondering who the Black church is giving their nod to for the upcoming election.
We have been told that politics at the local level is what makes things happen. When I look around, I see there are a lot of faces in politics that look like mine, yet I do not see the changes that are necessary for our people to move ahead.
There are politicians in this city who will not pick the phone up if and when you call. As of now, I am currently blocked on Facebook by one of our well-known Black politicians. I have been cursed out by another Black politician for voicing my opinion on a Facebook post.
I have personally come to the conclusion that there is always a winning option in politics if you are a believer. 1 Corinthians says, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”
In reading this, I thought about how many times I was told that, when voting, I have to pick the lesser of two evils. I finally realized that when He provides a way out, he is talking about Himself.
We have had Blacks in every level of politics now. We have finally had someone in the White House who looks like us. Although this is true, I must say I have not seen much change take place for Black people at this point. Some may not agree with me, but if they do their research, I am sure they will agree afterward.
In knowing this, I had to ask myself, what got us here? What got us to the point of politics? What got us to the point of being able to have some of the liberties we have today as Black people? The only answer I could come up with is our faith.
Do you realize it has only been 51 years since we were given the right to vote? On Aug. 6, 1965, Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act. History says slavery lasted 245 years (although I still see it). There is 100 years’ difference between the abolishment of slavery and the Voting Rights Act.
Again, I ask, how did we get here?
Our faith not only helped release us from the shackles of slavery, but it also helped us to fight for the rights to do the things we do today. We did not die for the right to vote. We died for human rights. We have become so entrenched in politics that we have forgotten our true strength was our faith in the Lord. We have started believing in what and whom we see and have lost our sense of hope in what God can do.
Psalm 146:3 says, “Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save.” I am not saying you should not vote. All I am saying is you should realize that with God, we can move mountains (100 years), and without him, we are lost.
He has proven time and time again he is the ONLY way for us to grow as a people. Let’s get ourselves reacquainted to Him.
Greg Meriweather is the host of the Black On Black Radio Show and the chief executive officer of Black On Black LLC.
