THE GHETTO: ¿STATE OF MIND OR BEING? - THE RELIGIOUS HALO

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RELIGION: the push-button Zion of those who have made it and therefore have it made. There, amidst the comforting oasis in a chaotic world, most give praise to God as they are being sold self-denial to pamper their souls. I often wonder if the URGENCY of the Cross ever be made real to those who cocoon in front of an entertainment center and insist on defining hell as that damaged place AND heaven as the proper side of town? Moreover I often wonder about persons that live in a GHETTO area OR substandard conditions…how do they feel that the church serves them? When I think about this, my spirit is both peeved and stirred by the neighborhoods of such places. I'm moved by the fact that there are generations upon generations that somehow kept subscribing to the mantra that things will get better because PASTOR tells them that God will make a way somehow…The result of many persons in the GHETTO that left themselves behind AND now find themselves with NO spiritual heritage AND even less personal faith of their own. It is MOST disappointing that they over-identify the shortcomings of their lives while NOT trying to do anything about fixing things themselves. But then again, who cares? Didn’t God somehow abandon them, thus it is HIS responsibility to help GHETTO folks out of their caves? SO GHETTO folks live as if they are forged into dark jungles with unknown dangers lying ahead. They have this misconception that the QUALITY OF LIFE is better in the gated community rather than the substandard places they live. And rightly so, BUT ISN’T THE GHETTO a STATE OF MIND & NOT a STATE OF BEING? Therefore it is sensible for persons living in the GHETTO to have a mindset that RELIGION will fix things for them? Does it make sense to believe that God will give us if we ask him for it? How can they NOT see that they are placing their RELIGIOUS WELL-BEING OVER their SPIRITUAL WELL-BEING? For a lot of folks living in the GHETTO, it is NOT “either or” it’s “both and everything else”. Waiting on folks to be interested in  GOD'S message demands patience, because it is DIRECTLY related to need…if only they could ask God to give them eyes to see that where they live isn’t the problem, but how they choose to live is…SO many of them socialize BEFORE they evangelize…talk about worshipping God in spirit AND truth while settling for religious rituals…THE GENERATIONS WHO ARE LOST IN THE MALAISE OF WHO THEY ARE & WHAT GOD IS CAN BE OF GREAT INFLUENCE TO THOSE THAT COME AFTER THEM, BUT THEY ARE SO CAUGHT UP IN THE CHURCH FIXING THINGS THAT THEY DON’T HAVE THE TIME TO TEACH US WHAT GOD REALLY IS ABOUT. HOW CAN THEY NOT TAKE THE TIME TO STRATEGIZE ABOUT HOW TO INFLUENCE THE INFLUENCERS SPIRITUALLY & THEN WONDER WHY THEY ARE NOT INFLUENCING THEM? IS IT BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT TALKING TO US WHERE WE ARE, IN A LANGUAGE FAMILIAR TO US? I KNOW THAT THE ONUS IS NOT ON THEM TO MAKE THE EFFORT, BUT ON US TO PUT OURSELVES SECOND & LIVE WITH EACH OTHER INSTEAD OF AROUND EACH OTHER….WOULDN’T THAT BE GOD’S DESIRE FOR EVERYONE FROM THE GHETTO  TO THE GATED COMMUNITY? WHEN THE LIFE OF ONE INFLUENCER IS FREED FROM FEAR, DEATH and HOPELESSNESS…THINK WHAT THE SUBSEQUENT RIPPLES OF RECIPROCATION WILL BRING…THE VERY THOUGHT OF SUCH ENERGY JUST RUNS RAMPANT THROUGH MY SPIRIT BECAUSE IT CAN GIVE THE GHETTO  THE HEALING IT SO DESPERATELY NEEDS…