I was a toddler… maybe five or six years old. Even though Texas isn’t the “deep south,” we had our share of racial bias. You could hear it in expressions used casually among regular folks. I remember being in one of the downtown department stores with my mom and siblings. I was thirsty, but there was a line at the “White” water fountain. No one was at the “Colored” water fountain. I remember Mom saying, “Drink here. There’s no difference.” I heard.

My dad had a radio-TV repair shop in downtown Fort Worth. I sometimes rode with him in his 1949 GMC panel truck when he went on calls to take repaired TVs to their owners, or to pick up a broken one. On occasion Dad would have too much work for his small shop, so we would go see Bob Durham in southeast Fort Worth, a black man who also repaired TVs. Dad and Bob treated each other with mutual respect. I watched.

Were there racial prejudices and problems in my hometown? Sure. Were my mom and dad totally without fault in matters of skin color and race? No. And though I learned to respect all people as a young boy, I must admit my heart and my attitudes are not always where they should be. I still need to hear, to watch, and to learn.

Others have said it and I’m the same. I’m sure I don’t understand what our black friends experience or what they and their families have had to endure all their lives. I don’t see the world from their perspective, and that keeps a barrier between us, even though it may be a low cultural wall. Still…it is there.

You may be reading this in another country and are wondering why I am writing this for a Monday Memo. Every country I have visited has racial prejudice among the different ethnic groups. A friend in Russia was concerned for her husband because he was from a different ethnic background, from a region that was engaged in fighting with authorities over their rights. She was afraid he would be attacked on the streets. Sound familiar? If you give it some thought, you can probably come up with a people…an ethnic group…that you struggle with in your heart. “We don’t trust them. We don’t accept them. We don’t relate to them. Bottom line…we don’t love them.” We don’t communicate that in words, but we do with our actions…or lack of action.

Love.

That’s what it comes down to. Do we love others…all others…as we love ourselves? Do we take God’s Word seriously when it says we should consider others more highly than ourselves? Paul underscored the importance of honoring others.

Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. Philippians 2:3-4 NLT

James taught what discrimination and a judgmental heart reveals about a follower of Christ.

…doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives? James 2:4 NLT

The Apostle Paul, that former terrorist and persecutor of those who turned from Judaism to follow Christ, had a change of heart. When Christ came to rule his life, he saw things differently. To the believers in Ephesus he said:

…be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4:32 NLT

That nails me. “…just as God…has forgiven you.” I was forgiven while I was still sinning.

God’s Word reminds us to not be just hearers of the word…but doers. This is a time for action. And it is a time for us to earnestly pray that the Lord might lead us to take steps to reconcile with those of another race, color, or ethnic group. To listen to them. To hear their heart and to try to better understand their world. It won’t be easy and it won’t be perfect. It will be a step.

Judy and I, over the past several days, have reached out to some of our black friends. We wanted to let them know we were hurting with them. That we loved them. A step. A small one. I hope it will lead to further dialogue between our friends of other skin color and other backgrounds. Better understanding. And a better sense of how God sees us and how we should see each other.

Now is the time. The time to listen, learn, and love.