Check out the downloadable list of resources I have compiled below entitled “Compassionate holy listening groups focused on the topic of race and cultural diversity within the church” and “Cultivating compassion and learning about race ideas and resources (updated as of 3 May 2023).” Contact me if one of the listed opportunities to join in below feels like the next right thing for you. The authors of these resources recognize that we all are affected by racism and we each have our own personal (and perhaps public) work to do. * I believe in treating all people with dignity and respect and care, including my own self. I also recognize we all were born into a family background, location, and time period that we did not choose. Yet, I do believe we still have choice in how we make meaning of our lives and stories and we can choose what kind of person we are going to be in life through a series of small actions starting right now.
I have a strong hope for the church. I believe we of Christian faith are called to follow in the ways of Christ and this includes the manners in which we love our neighbor- all of our neighbors. Is there room for us to do better in this area even with the people who sit right next to us that we do not yet know? I think we can do better and are called to be the example in the world because of the unbelievable way in which Jesus first loved us. What does this command mean to you to love our neighbor in your day to day life? Are you being invited to see a broader view that includes Micah 6:8? Maybe it’s not the same work or actions for you and for me. We will each have to do our own noticing, our own reflecting, our own learning, and our own listening to God and to others to see where there is discomfort within ourselves and invitations from the Spirit or from your fellow man to pay closer attention to what’s going on in and around us and take action. Even the action of checking out these resources and choosing to read (or listen) through it and noticing our responses for ourselves could be a great first action that involves many smaller choices and steps.
I hope you’ll consider what step you can do at this time. I hope you’ll find these resources helpful. I’d love to hear what you decided to do and how it worked out for you.
Opportunity to join in:
- ‘book club‘ If one of the book resources stands out to you, please reach out and let me know. Maybe we can be intentional in reading and sharing thoughts about it together. I’d really like that and am interested in getting started on one together with others very soon.
- ‘listening prayer‘ If you also care about this and would like to come together regularly to pray for one another as we move forward in our own contexts, please reach out to me. I’d like to begin praying with others about this because this is moving forward in my area and I’m fully aware I need compassionate and honest community, prayer, and continued sensitivity to the Spirit at work in and around me. Would you pray with me?
Curious about who I am? Click here for my reintroduction blogpost. This equipping blogpost “resources on conversations about race cultivating compassion and learning in the church” is simply my desire to share what I’ve come up with so far in my search of resources to help me help a church navigate discussions about race. This is also for myself as I realized how much learning I need to continue to do for myself as a bi-racial female (mom, Chaplain, and neighbor) navigating majority white spaces in Central Texas. I know my work and this work is not done yet! It will be a life-long journey and this compilation is a work in progress. Perhaps one day, I’ll be inspired to blog how I even got to this point but that’s too tender right now for online publication. However, I am more than happy to share with others one-on-one if you’re interested, just reach out!
* There is no benefit to the author or to myself in adding a particular author or resource to this list. This was my own compilation as I prayed about and searched for resources that seemed to meet my needs at the time. If you have other options that you think would be helpful to explore, please share them with us and a little bit about why you recommend it. Thanks.
Sincerely,
Sejana
Sejana Shines 