My name is Kinan and I’m from Damascus, Syria. I live in Murfreesboro, TN together with my husband and two kids and I teach high school chemistry. My journey to be able to write that last sentence has been so long and hard that sometimes I can’t even believe my own story.
My name is Naseem and I am 18 years old. I arrived in Nashville, Tennessee back in November 2015. My family came to look for a better place to live, better opportunities to find work, and also to get the best education possible for me and my two other siblings.
Knowing the stories of immigrants and refugees in our own backyard helps remind us of God’s command to love the foreigner and it reminds us of our own status as foreigners in the world. It puts real faces and names to people that may otherwise remain as a news headline on our TVs.
On January 1, 1863 over 2 million slaves were set free due to the Emancipation Proclamation given by Abraham Lincoln. Unfortunately, that wasn’t all enslaved peoples. There were still approximately 250,000 more slaves in Texas who were still considered property. They had been declared free. They just didn’t know it yet, they hadn’t experienced it yet.
Over the past few years, we’ve talked a lot about listening. With the rise of racial tensions in America along with varying positions within Christendom on justice, women in ministry, and to mask or not to mask, pastors all over the country have been dusting off their sermons on James to call God’s people to “be slow to speak and quick to listen” (James 1:19) in such a noisy world.
It’s April 3rd when I’m writing this. 5 years ago, my earthly father passed away from this life and entered into the unhindered presence of Jesus. I was there by his side, along with my mom and siblings. It was one of the holiest moments of my life.
This Memorial Day creates an opportunity for intentional remembering, one that I hope we don’t miss. Perhaps you stop at one of the many beautiful veterans cemeteries in the area to pay your respects. Perhaps you take time to pray for those who have lost a loved one in service, or if you know someone, you reach out. Perhaps you go on a walk and just give yourself a little time of quiet and solitude in remembrance.
One of these things is not like the others. Judas is a betrayer. Cancel Culture is rooted in unforgiveness. And both are antithetical to the way of Jesus.
Culture is moving fast. Like, a Tesla on an open road kind of fast. Like a mega-rich CEO on his personal rocket kind of fast. Have you noticed?
To live in Nashville is to understand the rising cost of housing. Long-time residents of Nashville are being displaced through a process called gentrification where the homes or apartments they rent are sold for the purpose of redevelopment, or they can no longer afford to remain in the homes they own due to rising property taxes. These residents lose their homes but also their communities and often their sense of belonging.