Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Proverbs 27 verse 5:
“Better is open rebuke
than hidden love.”
There comes a time when we all have to stand up and be counted, to stand next to and be quiet no more. This is the time when, as Jesus said, what has been whispered in the ear is to be shouted from the rooftop.
I read an article this weekend on how the anti-LGBTQ movement has apparently grown more emboldened to publicly condemn LGBTQ persons. This is of course true on the internet, but also in public meetings, state legislatures, and the church. In many places it grows more difficult to speak up for our gay friends and relatives, even while so many of us do feel a deep love for and acceptance of them. It’s just hard to speak for them. It’s hard to speak in a church meeting, or at the beauty shop, or in a town hall. It really is hard to speak; our lips quiver.
But no matter how difficult it may be, it’s time to speak. The world will not change by itself. The wheels of justice do not turn without human force. Condemnation will keep on happening without a strong, faithful defense. Neighbors and loved ones have to learn how to stand up and speak.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
In this country we have the right to remain silent. But we also have the right to speak up; it’s time more of us do.
Our friends are counting on it.
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