Come like a fire
Come light the way
Come light our fire
Come burn in me again
Come let your love take hold
Your fire burning not my own
Come like a fire
Come light the way
Come like a fire
The fire we hide
Come light our fire
Don't keep it inside
God we want you
God we need you
Lord we hear your name
God we want
God we need you (we cry out for you)
Oh Emmanuel
Consume me like a flame
I'll pursue you all my days
King Jesus I concede
That you are everything
This light of mine
I will let it shine
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
John 1:5 NIV
A few years ago the movie Selma premiered. The film artistically documented Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s profound march and campaign to secure equal voting rights from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965. If you haven't seen it, I strongly urge you to. It's incredible to see what has changed, while also seeing what continues to plague our nation thanks to Social Media. With Social Media we have instant access to all of the horrific manifestations of racism in our world--having instant access to watch black people being killed harkens back all too similarly to our country's past. I remember the final credits rolling and sitting directly behind an African-American couple that could have been my Grandparents. Each of us sat in silence for mere moments, but felt like an eternity. The weight of the world felt as if it had just come crashing down on my shoulders and I did not know how to process what I was feeling. Sarah and I didn't speak until we got in our car and began our drive back to Annapolis. I lost all control and had to pull over, completely overwhelmed with emotion.
The world we live in has become increasingly more and more focused on the social injustices and atrocities that are occurring on a global scale. Most notably for someone like myself:
I'm watching my Facebook feed, the news, and all Social Media, seeing people being murdered that look like me.
Come Like a Fire became a direct representation of that holiness I felt so much in the churches I attended as a child. There was something incredibly spiritual around a community gathering every Sunday morning, taking a moment to give thanks, and celebrating the safety, and sanctity they found within their community. I remember attending revivals and that incredible knowledge that there was something moving within the spirit of those around me. My favorite hymn from childhood was 'This Little Light of Mine.' And how eloquently did it speak to our world right now.
Sarah and I have spent countless hours listening to a number of Podcasts by The Liturgists. Last year, they gave perhaps the most poignant conversation I've heard in years. Take a moment to listen here.
The conversation of racism and social injustice within America is not over. It's barely begun.