Activism for Everyone

I'm not one to comply with cultural prompts for celebration or grief. I do, however, sometimes get inspired by current events. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day last week, reports of serious cruelty in my community, plus a podcast I've been listening to called Mother Country Radicals have piqued my curiosity about activism. What is it? How does it work? What are the potential risks and benefits?

My current conclusion is that as a Christian I am without a doubt called to activism. Seeing the world as I do, injured, wounded, hurting, unjust, and yet with the hope of redemption and recovery, I see my job as doing what I can to help it heal. This is the work of bringing the Kingdom.

I operate primarily in my own tiny world: trying to love myself and my fellow tribe well, connecting regularly and intentionally with a benevolent Creator who leads with sacrificial love, stepping outside of my immediate circle on purpose to give generously and with great respect and curiosity. I've made a career out of making myself available to come alongside those seeking healing.

I am also seeing more clearly lately my unique gifts given to enact this calling to activism. I have a relatively small platform (but perhaps bigger than most) through these social media outlets. I am an effective and charismatic communicator. I am intensely empathetic and yet more and more differentiated. I am trained in scholarship and research. People tend to listen to me from both sides of the political spectrum. I am both trained and experienced in reading people and understanding the psychological components of motivation. I am logical and rational.

I am not applying for a job here, but rather asking you to take the same inventory. If you are a Christian, you are also called to activism. What are your gifts to do this job? What opportunities do you have to affect change? What injuries and offenses are you passionate about? All of this spells out your calling in this world, in this time. We are not called to self-protection, but self-sacrifice. We are called to work together, not against one another. So how will you do this?

Want to start right now in a small way? Here's how you can find our your state representatives: https://www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member Send them a note about how you're feeling about current government actions.

Stay tuned for more on the causes I'm passionate about.