FROM THE PUBLISHER
WHEN SEASONS CHANGE
I WAS A CHILD IN THE 60S. I WATCHED MY FAMILY’S BLACK AND WHITE TELEVISION TO WITNESS THE BLASTOFF OF THE FIRST MANNED ROCKET TO THE MOON: I watched countless five o’clock news accounts of the war in Vietnam. I even remember when the Jesus people (unbathed and barefoot hippies) invaded my starched-collared downtown church. I also remember the fallout when someone took a photo of our youth group in a prayer circle, with different races holding hands in prayer. I am thankful we’ve transitioned from that day to this, where the unity of races is encouraged. But all that to say that I’ve heard and even believed a lot of the myths popular in the past. Myths about race, war, and God’s view of me. A lot has changed since I was a little girl. I’ve grown up. I’ve traveled through many seasons. I’ve seen myths dispelled by time, truth, love and maturity. Today is no different. We as a church are entering into a brand new season heralded by surprises at the voting booths and even riots in our streets. But let me remind everyone that even when values and norms change, even when the political climate feels uncertain, God is still God. He is still on his throne. We can still trust him. He has given us an assignment to love Him with all of our hearts and to love our neighbors as ourselves. The list of neighbors I think Jesus was referring to
live, not only in our houses of worship but also in the houses of those who hold political and cultural beliefs quite different from our own. Jesus’s command to love our neighbors never means that we should diminish truth or who we are in Christ; it means we should show kindness, and express patience and peace to all. It’s going to take a lot of love to help us bust through the myths that we as neighbors believe about one another, but with God’s help, we can reach across the aisle and barricades to clasp our hands in prayer. For when we love God and our neighbors, even in difficult seasons of change, we are in effect turning on the light of truth for this generation. If you are praying for revival today, know it will only start when we learn that it is still okay to love our neighbors, even when we don’t understand them or even when we feel afraid of them. Don’t forget: perfect love casts out fear. So, if you feel afraid, ask God to gift you with a superabundance of His love. Let’s take this opportunity to pray together for this new season. Dear Lord, turn on the light of your love in our lives so we can learn how to love our neighbors, even when they stand against much of what we believe and hold dear. Teach us how to practice the fruit of the Holy Spirit so that we can operate in an abundance of kindness, patience, and peace. And we also pray that your light of truth will shine on us, our country and our society in a way to help blind eyes see. Bring the fires of revival to this generation. In Jesus’s name. Amen. S Love, LINDA EVANS SHEPHERD PUBLISHER, LEADING HEARTS MAGAZINE
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --{3.}