When I was in college at Illinois State, I worked at a restaurant called Moe’s Southwest Grill. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Moe’s, it is very similar to Chipotle. It was by far the best job I ever had at a restaurant. The people were great, the work was fun, and I got plenty of hours which I couldn’t always say of my jobs. When I first started there, the GM of the store, after learning my name was Marty, always called me McFly, from Back to the Future. It didn’t bother me because people had made that connection with my name in the past and I was familiar with the movie. I do have to admit that I didn’t actually watch the Back to the Future movies until I was at Lincoln Christian University. Some people ask me if I was named after Michael J. Fox’s character because I was born not long after the movies were made. Unfortunately, I wasn’t. Marty, or my legal name, Martin, isn’t very common in my family and my dad has a big family so he wanted to give my brother and I names that would be memorable. As I grew up, I realized just how many famous/popular Marty/Martin’s are out there. Among others, there’s Marty McFly; Martin Luther, the Reformationist; Martin Van Buren, the president; and Martin Luther King Jr, the Civil Rights Activist, who we celebrated a few weeks ago on his birthday.
I know most people connect February with Valentine’s Day, and I am usually one of those people. I’d like to take a different angle on February here, however. February is also Black History Month. It is a month that people take to recognize the African Americans who have made a difference in this country over the past 250 years. People like Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglas, The Tuskegee Airmen in WWII, Malcom X, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and I’m sure many others whose names I don’t know.
I know most people connect February with Valentine’s Day, and I am usually one of those people. I’d like to take a different angle on February here, however. February is also Black History Month. It is a month that people take to recognize the African Americans who have made a difference in this country over the past 250 years. People like Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglas, The Tuskegee Airmen in WWII, Malcom X, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and I’m sure many others whose names I don’t know.
Growing up with the name of Martin, I gravitated toward Martin Luther King Jr. I liked how he always preferred nonviolence instead of forcing his way. I liked that he was a pastor at a church in Atlanta. I liked that he always seemed calm no matter what was thrown his way. King knew how to use his voice to great effect. In the book of Esther, Mordecai tells Queen Esther in 4:14, “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Esther was able to use her voice to save her people, the Jews, from mass obliteration. King used his voice as well, not to save his people, but to try to free his people from social ostracism and morally wrong practices done to them because of the color of their skin. Unfortunately, that fight for equality among all races in this country isn’t over. There are still some occasions where racism still exists, and it’s really sad. Martin Luther King Jr. saw a problem in his time and did all he could to fix it, bringing about multiple changes, such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, bringing about the end of segregation in public places. He was ultimately assassinated in 1968 because of his influence in the Civil Rights Movement, but he will always be remembered for the good that he did for African Americans and, in my opinion, the United States as well.
I don’t want to get into all of what is going on in the current United States, but I want to challenge you to use your voice like so many African Americans have. No, we don’t really deal with inequality, but there are still problems that need faced and changes that we, as God’s people, should be trying to bring about. For example, many Christians, myself included, are vehemently against abortion. Unborn babies are created by God just as much as any born baby is. They deserve to live just as much as the rest of us do. Unfortunately, we live in a culture where abortion is almost normalized. It’s legal in a lot of places. Planned Parenthood have centers in many cities across the United States. I think a lot of Christians think that the best plan to end abortion is to close the places that do it. Unfortunately, I don’t think that will work. Closing down bars and even ending the production of alcohol didn’t stop people during prohibition in the early 1900’s. The problem isn’t necessarily the practice. The problem is ultimately the heart. What if we lived in a world where abortion wasn’t people’s first resort when they have an unwanted or unexpected pregnancy? What if they had other viable options and were aware of such options? I think that is how we bring an end to abortion.
We all have a voice. We all have the capability to bring about change and make differences in people’s lives. As Christians, I think our #1 priority should be helping bring God’s kingdom here on earth. We can’t do that by sitting by and watching the news and seeing this world fall apart around us. We do that by getting out into the community, getting involved in people’s lives, and being Jesus to them. From there, God can do amazing things. All he asks of us is obedience and trust. God can do a lot through us if we trust Him and are obedient to His calling.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.” -Romans 1:16 (NIV)
