Lives

My mind reeled as Brad and I crawled to bed, and my "almost addiction" checking the newsfeed on my phone was the culprit. The Facebook video of a motorist's death in Minnesota had disappeared, and in its place? Dallas. Snipers. Police officers.

More death.

More violence. More protest. More hate. More death.

More senseless, purposeless, vengeful, spiteful death.

And more questions.

From the election vitriol to senseless deaths of all types, hate somehow dictates what splashes first in our newsfeeds.

I don't profess to live the most diverse life in the world. To call it honestly, my circle is pretty white, pretty LDS, pretty conservative, and pretty middle class. But included in the circle of those I love--people of different colors, people of different religions, people of different lifestyle choices. Neighbors who are black. Family members who wear the blue uniform. Friends who are gay. People I love fiercely.

It's not the color of your skin or the color of your hair or the color of your uniform. It's the status of your soul. It's not black lives that matter. It's not white lives that matter. It's not blue lives, gay lives, straight lives, homeless lives, military lives, civilian lives or unborn lives.

Lives matter.

Life matters.

Period.

And the only solution to hate that I know is love--not a love of the choices people make that may be different from our own but a love of the soul inside the shroud of skin. That's what God does.

God didn't make us all the same, but He does love us all the same. The black ones. The blue ones. The white ones. The gay ones. The peaceful ones. And the violent ones.

These words of Dr. Martin Luther King have been circulating today: "Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."

The words of Christ also came to me: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27)

I don't present any answers. I know hearts are heavy and hearts are hurting.

May God give us all a bit more understanding, and may all those who are hurting find peace.