How I've responded to Racism

Written By @3130beloved
Deep in thought in Singapore.

Deep in thought in Singapore.

“What brand of Asian are you?”, says an elderly white man. As others responded defensively, “Wow, are you serious?” + “You shouldn’t ask like that,” I tapped a few of them whispering, “It’s O.K.”
“I’m Chinese,” I said.
Him: “Oh, I have a lot of Filipino friends.”
Me: “Ha! That actually has nothing to do with being Chinese. We are a completely different ‘brand’.”
Him: “Oh! Sorry about that. How long you been in this country?”

Jaws dropped open again 😧awaiting a defensive response. Calmly I said, “I was born in Virginia, but I’ve lived in California all my life.” I followed up, “You know? Maybe a better way next time to ask is, ‘What’s your ethnic background? When you say ‘a brand’, I think of a cereal brand.” The man laughed and said, “You have great energy.” Another man takes off his headphones and says, “You do. What is that? What defines good energy to you?” [ Mind you… this happened in a sauna at the gym! ]


I’m dying of heat, but there’s 8 elderly men in there and I’m thinking that maybe this is my only chance to share a pinch of who God is to them so… alright then, let’s drop these seeds! With no time to waste, I went for it.😰 “You know? I believe we’re all made in the image of God. This ‘good energy’ you sense, I believe, is the spirit of #God that lives and dwells within me; it’s really not me. I think He wants us to live in the freedom #Christ that is proclaimed over us. God wants to live free of fear, doubt and death. I accepted Christ into my life a few years ago and this who is you’re seeing.”

Man: Hm. I think the only real thing is the present moment
Me: Really? My past feels pretty “real” to me so how can it only be the present that is true?
Man: Well, we gotta keep our peace somehow.
Me: Maybe. But life happens and it can be painful or knock us off our peace so then what?
Man: Hopefully you get yourself back on
Me: I guess you can try. I tried that without God for more years than I want to share & that would last maybe a day before I’d fall back off track again.
✨
This convo went on for 40 MINUTES! I seriously couldn’t breathe but he kept asking questions while everyone else was listening so I stayed with him. He said, “So you believe that worrying about anything at all is an act of rebellion against God?”
Me: I do, but this is also human and my God knows that. He not angry with us. He created us so He has compassion, understanding and empathy for everything we feel because he once was human too.
Him: “Yea, I also grew up Jewish. I remember this verbiage.”
Me: Oh I didn’t grow up #Christian. #Jesus saved my life 6yrs ago and I chose to follow Him on my own. Well I need to get some air so it was lovely to meet you all! I’m so sorry for disturbing your sauna time.
They said, “No! You didn’t at all! Thanks for talking and sharing all of that.”
✨
I ran out of there shrugging in my spirit like, “Lord, salvation belongs to you. May they recognize your voice when you call them on that day.” However my biggest take away is that I think simply going against the grain with my initial response of grace and kindness opened the doors for this entire conversation to happen while others were open to listening. Granted this elderly man was not overtly trying to slander me but the way we respond can truly turn heads to see God.
THOUGHTS?!😌

@3130beloved

I’ve always hated these, “Bio” or “About me” sections— so awkward.

But… after living 25 years lost in my agnostic world chasing my own fame, glory, comfort and will I was brought to my end. After the death of my mom, ending the most manipulative & emotionally abusive relationship, a lifestyle of drug addiction, 2 abortions, and finding myself empty while standing in the middle of what the world says is “bliss”… I reached the end of myself and the beginning of seeing Jesus’ light beaming down on me.

I met His Holy Spirit for the first time at a Halloween rave called, “Day of the Dead.” To this day, I still think this is one of the darkest places to be on our planet. I raved and popped pills to numb my pain, to avoid my fears and to suppress my sadness. I was in the middle of bobbing my head and raising my arms to the electro house music blasting in my ears when images of skeletons came on the TV monitors and the weak spirit within me has a knee-jerk reaction to put my arms down. “Whoa! I don’t worship that!”, I thought. “Wait, what do I know about worship?” Now looking back, there God was! The beginning of my site for Him.

A year later, I followed my brother (his good looking friend) to church (@realityLA). I don’t remember the sermon but I heard God for the first time when worship began singing, “Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders. Let me walk upon the waters wherever you would call me.”

I LOST my mind.

It was an overwhelming & LAVISHINGGG upon me of, "Hi precious girl. I see you. I know you. I’ve been here. I know your pain. I know your loss. I know you are lost. I know you’re angry, specifically with me because you lost your mom and you think your life is unredeemable but my beloved, I’ve been coming after you because you are mine.” I cried the hardest I’d ever cried in my life because my entire being just knew… This. Is. God. This. Is. The. Master. Of. The. Universe— and He wants me? Broken, selfish, ugly me?

I soon followed this good looking friend of my brothers to a community group. There is where I met the love of God through His people as they accepted me, fed me, welcomed me, and took me in as family despite my lifestyle that rebelled against everything they believed. One year later, I said, “Fine. I’ll follow until you fail just like everything else has.” Well… He hasn’t failed nor broken any promise yet. ;) My choice to accept Jesus as my Lord, savior and new identity has brought me more freedom than I could have ever fathomed. I didn’t know what I was living for or aiming at but God truly lit up every shadow, broke down every wall, shattered every lie and came after me.

Salvation belongs to the Lord.

As the world kicks and screams trying to shout their way to justice, peace and unity on their own terms right now, may the roots of our identity in Christ grow deeper each day together as one body; as one family.

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.

The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.”

https://3130beloved.com
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