Musings from Graceland

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Here's a link to the newspaper story about Chris and "Hollywood" Billy Lightner.
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http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080901/NEWS/809010345/1001/news
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But the story only tells the bare facts. In this article, Chris and Hollywood are just two more troubled men involved with murder that's tragically too common in inner-city Jackson and mostly among the young Black men who live there. But these are men who have mothers, cousins, neighbors, children who LOVE them. These are men that when they were little laughed and played and sang silly songs just like MY boys do today. Their lives are now destroyed...in Chris' case, literally.
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And there are so many more out there headed in the same direction. Yes, I know that they must take responsibility for their own actions. Chris was no saint himself and though he was presented the chance to change and receive new life through Christ, he refused.
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But at least he was offered that chance. So many others live and never even hear that they have different options.
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And what about the circumstances that got him to where he was so hardened he didn't want a savior? And what about Hollywood? What are the circumstances in his life that caused him to first start getting in trouble with the law as early as 11 years old?
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And what are WE the church...those who call themselves Christians, "little Christs", what is our responsibility in this?
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In the Jackson area, most of us have responded by fleeing and having as little to do with this scary and dark area. I know I did. One of the reasons we moved out into the country was to get away from the escalating crime.
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But what about those left behind? What about those precious little children? What about those young women who don't feel like they have any choice but to sell their bodies to survive? What about those young men who don't have fathers to teach them how to be real men and are receiving poor public educations that don't give them the job skills to rise above poverty? What about all the sin that is left to run unhindered because the Christians have either fled or those left there are often so scared they do just what they can to survive.
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Oh...I know there are some strong Christians and churches who didn't flee. I know there are some churches that decided to embrace the changing demographics around them and minister to the neighbors that were no longer lilly-white. And I know that there are some who are moving back in...families like the Lancasters and the Wingards.
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But tragically, there are too many of us who just want to leave those in inner-city Jackson alone to kill themselves off bit by bit...we'll leave them alone just as long as they leave us alone. We don't get concerned til they decide to invade OUR territory...enter our gated communities and rob or harrass us in our swanky shopping malls. We don't get upset til it's a black guy killing or raping a white woman.
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Yes, I'm ranting a bit this morning. I'm sad, I'm angry, I'm frustrated, and I don't know what to do next.
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We Christians MUST be light in the darkness. We must! We are commanded to. But instead it feels like we're just crouching in a corner somewhere holding up our hands around our puny little matches hoping the wind doesn't blow them out.
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