When We Stand by Terence Lester

Author:Terence Lester
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Community;community development;fight poverty together;unity;social justice;activism;shared humanity;compassion;Love Beyond Walls;love sinks in;lovesinksin;activism as a family;activism as a small group;activism as a church;work together;group service projects;serve the community together;community group;neighborhood;serve the poor
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Published: 2021-03-30T11:18:54+00:00

Real relationships are forming in small increments of time, by small group members in a church giving just a bit of themselves—together. It reminds me of the early church in the book of Acts—how God moved in their community, and how they were deeply committed to each other and felt a responsibility toward one another. And how they had all things in common (Acts 2:43-47).

OPPORTUNITIES TO BRING JUSTICE

ARE EVERYWHERE

Whether you start by serving multiple times per week like Jamil or join a rotating monthly serving schedule like the congregants at Aaron and Michelle’s church, the opportunities for bringing justice and restoration are everywhere. You might also decide to join an organization that is doing things on the other side of the globe.

I’m inspired by people like Carlos Rodriguez, for example. Carlos is an author, a preacher, and the founder and CEO of the Happy NPO.4 His nonprofit organization works to bring social and economic relief to those who need it the most. Focusing on the “poorest of the poor,” Carlos and his team are on the ground in places like Puerto Rico, where disaster relief continues after hurricanes and earthquakes have left people without the basic necessities of life like water, electricity, and food.5 Though many people come to help in the weeks that immediately follow a natural disaster, only a select few will stay beyond the news cycle of the story. Carlos is one who has stayed. One of his campaigns is called the Blue Roof Fund, named for the hundreds of blue tarpaulins that are currently acting as makeshift roofs for Puerto Rico’s citizens. In partnership with local nonprofit agencies, Carlos’s goal is to help to restore homes and businesses there. The Happy NPO offers to host anyone who has an interest in serving; individuals can stay with them while engaging in such work.6

There are also justice activists like my friend Shaun King. As a writer, podcaster, and cofounder of Real Justice PAC, Shaun and his team are fighting for political reform within our justice system by employing new political strategies—ones that rally voters behind one major issue. Currently, he is mobilizing a new generation of voters to elect officials such as district attorneys who will fight the policies that are endemic in structural racism.7

Shaun uses social media to inform and inspire as well as to right the wrongs of our justice system. He was instrumental in the 2019 internet campaign to save Rodney Reed, a fifty-one-year-old man from Texas who was due to be executed for a crime, even though substantial evidence had suggested he was innocent. The petition to stay the execution of this man succeeded, having attained nearly three million signatures; it was the fastest-growing human rights petition of all time.8 It has provided Rodney with an opportunity to regain his freedom if the courts exonerate him.9 Shaun continues to use his social media platform to rally his followers to commit small but impactful acts for justice.

Both Carlos and Shaun are engaged in serving humanity by righting wrongs, but their fights are different.

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