I’ve been remiss on my blog posts lately. Probably because I try to keep the blog upbeat and right now there’s not a whole lot to be upbeat about. Well, Ed does have a pet spider that lives on his barbecue grill, but we’ll save that subject for another time. It would be so nice to get in the car and go on vacation, but there is a fear of dying if you stop to use the restroom, so no. About the only safe way to travel now is by pulling a trailer behind your car, and since I might have a lead foot when it comes to driving, I’m nixing that idea. At any rate, because I don’t seem to be all that upbeat, you’ll either have to stop reading now or put up with my ranting for a tad.
I learned a new term lately. Canku luta, which means Red Road in the Lakota language. In Lakota tradition, one’s self consists of the spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical. The parts connect and when one is neglected, the other parts become diseased. By taking care of the four parts, you get inner peace which projects outside our bodies to the universe and is called the 7th Direction. The 7th Direction becomes vitally important when something out of our control happens. If we’ve maintained our spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical well-being, we’re better prepared to survive what may happen to us and to cope with life’s ups and downs.
That’s all pretty profound, if you think about it, even with my terrible shortened version of the concept. If you google canku luta, you’ll find more in-depth explanations if you want to learn more about it. But it’s Biblical if you think about it. This Lakota tradition is not too far removed from what we learned in Sunday School. The Bible teaches us to take care of our spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical well-being. The Bible also teaches us to love one another and basically what goes around comes around. (Horribly paraphrased there!) That is also part of the 7th Direction. Since I’m almost positive the Lakota tribe didn’t have Bibles, I find it remarkable how closely their tradition mirrors what we believe.
Which brings us to what is happening in our world today, specifically in the United States. You don’t have to watch very much television to know that peaceful protestors aren’t the problem, but their cause has been hijacked by those who under no circumstances could be considered peaceful. Why?
My opinion? Their Red Road is nonexistent. No matter what religious principle you believe in, I can’t readily think of a one that believes harming people or people’s livelihood is acceptable. And I’m almost positive Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is rolling over in his grave. My opinion might be slightly tainted by the fact he’s on my short list of people I hold in the highest esteem, but I don’t think so. Violence never solved anything and only serves to dilute the message of those trying to accomplish something.
I continually see one question being asked. How do we get out of this mess? No one seems to have the definitive answer, but it’s actually pretty simple. It goes back to another question. What would Jesus do? I know what he wouldn’t do. He wouldn’t look the other way when a black person kills a white child playing in his front yard. He wouldn’t look the other way when “protestors” kill a black security guard just trying to do his job. He wouldn’t look the other way when hundreds of people are killed in black-on-black violence.
If you want change, you must be the change. And it starts with changing your own heart. There’s only one way to change your heart. You need to start looking up. The Lakota people nailed it. The Bible nailed it. Only when your spiritual health is good will everything else fall into place. Neglect that and every other part of your self will fall to pieces. Let anger take over your life and it’ll eat away at you worse than any cancer every could.
So, this is a call to action. To all the people who believe that God is in control, we need to pray for those who are hell bent on destroying our country. “One nation under God” should not be something that we say during the Pledge of Allegiance, but something we believe. There is only one solution to what’s happening now and it’s God. He made us, He can change us. All we have to do is ask.