Physically, Bishop Angel Nunez is in Orlando, Florida, for the all-important Reconciled Church conference, part of a movement to help spark healing the racial divide not only in the church, but in all of America.

Nunez’s heart, however, is back in his home of Baltimore, Maryland, a city drowning in chaos and turmoil and plagued with riots following the arrest of a young man black man that was put into a police van after being taken into custody, only to be taken to a hospital where he lapsed into a coma and died.

The senior pastor of Bilingual Christian Church, Nunez, who found himself squarely in the middle of the riots Monday night in Baltimore, is a panelist during Wednesday’s day-long Reconciled Church event. During a pre-event dinner Tuesday night, Nunez sat in the audience with his mobile device receiving and sending texts to keep up with up-to-the-minute news from Baltimore.

“I’m here in Florida because I need to be here with other national and international leaders to help spread this crucial message of The Reconciled Church,” Nunez said. “But there is so much going on back home. [Tuesday] morning, I attended a press conference and a pastor’s breakfast, where we had over 100 pastors there. We finished up and I got on a plane to come here. As soon as we’re done here, I’ll be back on a plane to Baltimore. I’ve called for a special prayer meeting at my church Saturday night, and we’re planning so much more.”

Monday evening after a plea for help from friend and associate Lt. Col. Melvin Russell of the Baltimore Police Department, Nunez walked from his office at Bilingual Christian Church to a spot where rioting had become heavy. After just coming back from Freddie Gray’s funeral, Nunez still adorned his clergy attire and said that, despite being maced, it was only by the God’s hedge of protection around him that he wasn’t injured badly.

“Without knowing it or without a plan, I found myself right there on the front line,” Nunez said. “In front of me 15 feet were police officers with their shields and masks. Behind me were the protestors. I was caught right smack in the middle of it. The grace of God was so beautiful because it just covered me. The CVS pharmacy was on fire, and the smoke from it just filled our lungs. The fire department had put up a hose to put it out, but people had stabbed the hose with knives, so water was shooting all over the place except for on the fire.

“Through it all, these people would see me with my clergy shirt and they would grab my hand and they would say, ‘Thank you for staying with us, thank you for being here.’ And then they would throw a rock and cuss. But they were thanking a man of God for standing in the gap for them.”

The riots had calmed down into Tuesday evening. Nunez said he and other pastors met with some of the inner-city gang members Monday night, and that gang members agreed to work with city officials to “keep young people from getting injured or killed.” Nunez said he believed that agitators from outside Baltimore had infiltrated the city and were encouraging and provoking youth to violence.

“That’s a huge challenge, and we’re praying for that situation,” he said.

Nunez says he and other pastors have led a multicultural prayer movement for the city of Baltimore for more than five years. But, he said, the city has been a powder keg waiting to explode all during that time.

“Freddie Gray’s death was only a tipping point because this situation has been building up and building up for years,” Nunez said. “When you have young people that are broken, that have no hope, that have been abused and rejected and have been abused by people in authority over them that are supposed to be protecting them, you’re going to have this kind of reaction. Their chant was, “no justice, no peace,” and our chant was, “we want justice, we want peace.”

For the second consecutive year, Nunez and other pastors are heading up an initiative called Bless Baltimore Motorcade, where church officials, with a police escort, will pile into 30 church vans filled with intercessors and circle the city on June 20. They plan to stop at specific places where heavy rioting has occurred and pray.

Churches will also come together Somebody Cares Baltimore to sponsor Day of Hope,  where police, churches and community serve more than 5,000 individuals in an atmosphere of fun and safety by connecting them with service providers and improving their lives by finding solutions.

And finally, Nunez says he plans to bring back some of the initiatives from The Reconciled Church to Baltimore.

It’s imperative that pastors in the city have a relationship with each other,” he said. “If we don’t build these bonds, then it simply isn’t going to work.”

Nigeria’s army has rescued 200 girls and 93 women during a military operation to wrest back the Sambisa Forest from the Boko Haram Islamist militant group, it said on Tuesday.

Boko Haram kidnapped more than 200 schoolgirls near the northern village of Chibok in April 2014, causing an international outcry. The six-year insurgency has seen thousands killed and many more abducted.

“Troops this afternoon rescued 200 girls and 93 women from Sambisa Forest. We cannot confirm if the Chibok girls are in this group,” army spokesman Major GeneralChris Olukolade said, adding Nigerian troops had also destroyed three camps run by the militants there.

Diplomats and intelligence officials say they believed at least some of the girls were being held in the forest about 100 km (60 miles) from Chibok, although U.S. reconnaissance drones failed to find them.

The girls and women will be screened on Wednesday to determine whether they had been abducted or if they were married to the militants, one intelligence source told Reuters.

“Now they are excited about their freedom,” he said. “Tomorrow there will be screenings to determine whether they are Boko Haram wives, whether they are from Chibok, how long they have been in the camps, and if they have children.”

Some of the girls were injured, and some of the militants killed, he said without giving more details.

The group was rescued on Tuesday afternoon from camps, “discovered near or on the way to Sambisa,” one army official said.

Nigerian forces backed by warplanes invaded the vast former colonial game reserve late last week as part of a push to win back territory from the group.

The group, notorious for violence against civilians, controlled an area roughly the size of Belgium at the start of the year but has since been beaten back by Nigerian troops, backed by Chad, Niger and Cameroon.

While the Nigerian army maintains the group is now hemmed in Sambisa Forest, militants have managed to launch attacks in the neighborhood including chasing soldiers out of Marte town and an island on Lake Chad.

© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.

The National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference is preparing for a convergence between evangelical Hispanics and Israel through the Hispanic Israel Leadership Coalition. 

HILC is preparing to equip pastors and churches with the necessary resources to engage Hispanics with the pro-Israel movement, and consequently help them understand the prophetic implications of partnering with God’s chosen people. 

“The Word of God says He will bless those who bless Israel,” says Tony Suarez, vice president for NHCLC and conference director. “We still believe Israel is the apple of God’s eye. God’s promises and covenants haven’t changed.”

Through HILC, Pastor Mario Bramnick says the evangelical Latino community will build a firewall against anti-Semitism and incline its members to be pro-Jewish advocates. To achieve this, the Coalition has formed an advisory board full of key Hispanic and Israeli leaders, including Dr. Samuel Rodriguez of NCHCLC, Liberty Counsel’s Mat Staver and Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations’ Malcolm Hoenlein, among others.  

Their vision, though, goes beyond loving Jews and looks toward the Middle East as a whole, especially concerning Muslims’ relationships with the Jews. 

“We need to effectively reach out to Christian Arabs in Middle East so they understand God’s plan and God’s will for evangelizing Muslims,” Bramnick says. “Many Middle Eastern Christians feel their cultural heritage has been hijacked by Muslims, and we want to stand for them, to bring to light plight of Arab Christians, even Palestinian Christians.” 

To do this, NCHLC and HILC have created a Latino-Jewish roundtable and are also planning to send hundreds of Hispanic leaders to Israel this summer for Empower 21.

The roundtable will focus on pro-Israel advocacy; countering racism, discrimination and anti-Semitism; joint initiatives to combat the campaign to delegitimize the State of Israel; and establishment of an international effort to impact Latin American governments, to advance pro-Israel policies and to fight bigotry and anti-Semitism.

It’s all to honor the Lord in blessing Israel, Suarez says, and Bramnick agrees.

“The Lord has appointed NHCLC … to stand in the gap between pro-Israel movement and God’s will for Ishmael,” Bramnick says. “The reconciliation agent can only come by the Spirit of God and the cross of Jesus Christ.”

The current Schick Hydro Silk TrimStyle ad is extremely inappropriate and vile, plus it is aired early in the evening when children are likely watching. It is so suggestive it’s disgraceful. The commercial shows three women in tiny bikinis standing behind small bushes strategically placed in front of their crotches. Two women then proceed to delicately trim these bushes with scissors.  The third woman uses her new Schick razor on the bush.  She trims it into the shape of a heart and the other two women stand amazed. The advertisement gives the impression they are trimming and shaping their pubic area because of how the trees are placed. You do not have to imagine much to see the implication. 

And to top it all, this commercial is airing on Nickelodeon and ABC Family Channel! 1MM does not approve of either of these networks, but it just shows that Schick has no boundaries as to when and where they will air this garbage. 

Schick, owned by Energizer Holdings Inc., needs to know it is not alright to air obscene commercials with highly offensive content, especially when children are likely watching. This is unacceptable! 

Please contact Schick (Energizer) through our website and ask them to pull their current ad immediately! Also, encourage the company to be more responsible in future marketing campaigns. If the company would like our business, it must no longer air vulgar ads. 

Monica Cole is the director of One Million Moms.

In Baltimore right now, police officers are under attack. Regardless of what may—or may not—have happened there, the police officers there must know that the public nationwide stands with the law enforcement community. It must be made clear that physical assaults on police officers will not be tolerated.

Thanks should be constant to heroic police officers who risk their lives to keep the public safe.

If media reports are accurate which indicate that Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said her city government “gave those who wished to destroy space to do that,” that is a terrible statement and message to give the public. Violence must not be an acceptable option in a civil society.

Being a police officer is a very difficult job—it is much harder when we do not feel the support of elected officials and government—the very people who should be supporting law and order. Police officers wake up, do their jobs and go home to their families. Police officers remain committed to enforcing the law and improving the quality of life of Americans nationwide.

There must be strong law and order. Law enforcement officers nationwide remain committed to making cities safe—and elected officials must stand side by side with them. 

Tonight, I call for all Americans to stand with the Baltimore Police Department.

Sergeant Ed Mullins is President of the NYPD’s Sergeants Benevolent Association (SBA).

Television screens are splashed with images of rioters throwing rocks at police, protesters chanting and hateful headlines. But there’s a deeper truth happening in Maryland’s capital.

Pastors and politicians are coming forward and shining light into darkness—quite literally singing “This Little Light of Mine.” 

Bishop Walter S. Thomas tells the New York Times  that their marching is countering against the violence. 

“We’re out here, and this is peaceful,” he says. 

He’s not the only one standing for the Lord. Baltimore pastor Antoine Burton posted a video of 500 pastors peacefully marching through the streets, reclaiming their city for Jesus. 

Churches have played a critical role in civil rights and social justice. As violence appears along street corners, pastors are critically aware of their spiritual role. 

“Jesus said, ‘Blessed are the peacemakers.’ Our first responsibility is to promote peace,” Rev. Uriel Castrillon tells the Baltimore Sun.

Please lift up these pastors in prayer as they take their spiritual roles in standing up for justice. 

The other day at bed, my littlest girl and I prayed a bold prayer for a contract on our home … that night. She doubts God right now. She doesn’t see things changing … she doesn’t see God working. We all really need something to change soon, but God doesn’t seem to be changing anything right now.

I wanted God to do something amazing that night … I’d even have taken the next day. In fact, I thought it probably would be the following day.

Unfortunately, it didn’t happen. And the “somewhat interested” response from the people who looked at my house caused my faith to wobble a bit.

See, I’ve been reading a book that has encouraged me to pray big prayers so I can see God answer in big ways … and I’m all for praying big prayers … but I’m wondering if I pray big prayers for big answers, am I also praying big prayers understanding that God might not answer in a big way? His gentle and loving answer might be something like, “Not yet.”

But I will be honest and tell you that I am tired of the “not yet” answer … and the “no” answer … I’d like a “yes.” But even as I say that I know that some of the nos and not yets have been the very best answers to my prayers. And I do trust Him to answer perfectly.

Argh! But I so want to get out of this situation … when I’ve used the word “desperately” to describe something in the past I don’t believe I’ve understood it as deeply as I do now … I desperately want to be released from this place God has my children and me. I don’t want to be here anymore. But I also don’t want to force it and end up in a place I’ll eventually desperately not want to be either.

I’d rather trust God.

That’s huge. Because right now, I can tell you I’ve had some conversations with God … and they haven’t all been holy.

But when given the alternative of figuring things out without Him, I’d rather trust God.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths” (Prov. 3:5-6).

When faced with decisions and dilemmas in this life, I’d rather trust God.

“Now no discipline seems to be joyful at the time, but grievous. Yet afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness in those who have been trained by it. Therefore lift up your tired hands, and strengthen your weak knees. 13 Make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame go out of joint, but rather be healed” (Heb. 12:11-13).

When I’m trying to raise my children to love and honor Him, I’d rather trust God.

“All your sons shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your sons” Isaiah 54:13

When I’m exhausted and weary with nothing left to give, I’d rather trust God.

“But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will boast in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. So I take pleasure in weaknesses, in reproaches, in hardships, in persecutions, and in distresses for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-10).

When I have no idea which way to turn, I’d rather trust God.

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake” (Ps. 23:1-3).

No matter how strongly I feel that I know what would be best, I’d rather trust God.

“May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ” (2 Thess. 3:5).

Oh, how I need my heart directed. This has been an exceedingly difficult time … and sometimes I don’t think others can quite understand the challenges. I don’t think I’m necessarily doing it with the grace I’d hoped, but the Lord continues to meet me where I am. He continues to love me through my doubts, fears and faltering faith. He continues to be faithful. I do trust that He will guide my family, that He is a shield about me, that He is my refuge and strength.

I do trust that He will enable me to do this life well … even when it feels anything but wonderful.

And I do trust Him for the sale of my house and the purchase of our next home.

But most importantly, I trust that He will reveal Himself to my littlest girl in just the right way at just the right time. That I don’t need to orchestrate things to convince my daughter of His love, faithfulness and existence! He will handle that … I just need to love on her and pray.

So tonight, as I lay my head down on my pillow, I will be praying for my children and their faith and for me to trust Him without hesitation … and for a buyer for my house!

Sue Birdseye is an author and single mom of five kids that range from 4-years-old to 17-years-old. Her book, When Happily Ever After Shatters (Tyndale House) is in bookstores. This is adapted from her blog, .

Reality television star Kim Kardashian pledged her full support on Monday for her stepfather, Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner, who said last week that he identifies as a woman.

Kardashian, 34, spoke out for the first time about her stepfather in an interview on NBC’s Today show with Matt Lauer saying what is most important to her and her family is that Jenner is happy.

“As long as he (is) happy, and he wants to live his life, however he wants to live it, that just makes me happy, and I support him 100 percent,” Kardashian said.

Jenner, 65, became the most high-profile American to come out as transgender when he told journalist Diane Sawyer on ABC’s 20/20 news magazine show that he was transitioning to become a woman.

Jenner, who won a gold medal in the decathalon at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, told Sawyer that “for all intents and purposes I am a woman.”

About 17 million people watched the show. It was also the top worldwide trend on Twitter with 8.1 million people seeing one or more of the 972,000 tweets about it.

“I am really happy for him in living his life the way he wants to live it and that he has found inner peace and just pure happiness. That is what life is about,” Kardashian added.

She said the family is still adjusting to the news but they are really close and going through family therapy. They have also spoken to organizations such as GLAAD about how to be respectful and supportive for him.

“Bruce wants us to feel as comfortable as possible and to take everything at our pace and we love him for that,” she added. “He’s done a really good job of walking us through it. 

Jenner, the patriarch of TV’s Kardashian clan, has been married and divorced three times and is the father of six biological children and four stepchildren.

© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved. 

No, this is not the setup for a pithy religious joke, nor is it validation for outlandish supernatural experiences where people actually pursue interaction with deceased saints. This is an invitation for us to respond to the Holy Spirit’s movement and power correctly.

Hang in there with me for a moment, as I want to help us answer this question in its correct context.

God is moving powerfully in the world right now. I’d dare say that since the Day of Pentecost, the Spirit has been moving throughout the earth. Unfortunately, many have reduced the zenith of His movement to a salvation prayer.

Don’t misunderstand me, though. Salvation is the greatest miracle and greatest move-in of the Holy Spirit. I refuse to ever devalue God’s supernatural work of converting our dead spirits and bringing us into eternal life. At the same time, we are not simply converted to go to heaven one day, but this divine act of conversion involves God depositing the power of heaven into jars of clay—us. We are saved and Spirit-filled.

Thus, the Spirit has indeed moved! He moved from heaven to earth at Pentecost and has not changed addresses since. He enters into our hearts when we receive the saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is powerfully present within us and among us. We have become His home, God’s New Testament temple on planet Earth. The problem is that so many Christians are crying out, “Lord, rend the heavens and come down,” when He already has.

God has sent Holy Spirit to live inside of His saints (saints meaning anyone who is a Christ follower) and be the Person of the Trinity who operates on earth. My question is simply, are we giving the Holy Spirit the appropriate space and opportunity to move in His fullness and power? He’s ready. In fact, He’s been ready for 2,000 years … are we?

What Does Revival Look Like?

For a while now, I have been asking the Lord what it looks like to live a “revival lifestyle.” However, I feel as though my language has been corrected in recent days. Dr. Michael Brown has reminded me that revival is not something that we as believers should constantly need.

Revival is like spiritual resuscitation. If we think we need revival all of the time, this means we are consistently falling into a place well beneath our identity and inheritance in Christ. If we think that we always need revival—constantly searching for some new supernatural jump-start to our faith—our pursuit is off. Mine has been off in the past, and in recent years, the Holy Spirit has been opening my eyes to what revived Christianity looks like. We simply need to get back to normal … and refuse to exchange the Biblical normal for what culture says should be normal.

Let’s not adapt our faith culture—both personally and corporately—to the world, but instead, ensure that our faith is in agreement with what is normative in Scripture. What is normal? The model of Jesus and the demonstration of the early church. Jesus modeled what the normal Christian life should look like, the early church demonstrated it, and now, the invitation is once again extended for every single believer to bring their personal experience up to the standard of what is revealed in Scripture.

When Jesus, Moses and Elijah Show Up

What we need to avoid at all costs is responding to God’s supernatural movement with a natural mind. This is not a call to throw our brains out the door; instead, it is a summons for us to live in a greater level of moment-by-moment dependency on the Spirit. Remember, He is already living in us and among us. The fact is that there are times when He wants to move in unusual, powerful ways. We must learn how to recognize this and flow with Him.

I want to look quickly at a New Testament picture of an unusual outpouring of God’s presence and glory … and examine how Jesus’ followers responded:

“About eight days after these sayings, He (Jesus) took Peter and John and James and went up onto a mountain to pray. As He prayed, the appearance of His countenance was altered, and His clothing was white and glistening. And suddenly two men were talking with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of His departure which He was to accomplish in Jerusalem. Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep. But waking thoroughly, they saw His glory and the two men who stood with Him. As they departed from Him, Peter said to Jesus, ‘Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three sanctuaries: one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijahm’ not knowing what he said” (Luke 9:28-33).

For the purpose of this article, “Moses and Elijah” are simply illustrations who represent an unusual manifestation of the supernatural. We are not looking for these two guys to show up in our church services or prayer closets today—we are simply running after Jesus and yearn to experience Him in His glory, presence and power!

When God’s manifest presence and glory shows up—and we sense the rumblings of revival—what do we often do? (By the way, these are things that we should NOT be doing).

• We speak … when we really should keep silent.

“Peter said to Jesus, ‘Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three sanctuaries: one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah,’ not knowing what he said” (Luke 9:33).

Not knowing what he said, Peter spoke, trying to come up with some kind of natural human response to the glory that his mortal eyes just saw manifested. Sometimes, there aren’t words … and that’s OK. Sometimes, we don’t cry—we laugh. Sometimes, we don’t laugh, we cry. Sometimes we fall down. Sometimes we kneel. Sometimes we sing.

Do you see what I’m saying here? In revivals past, particularly during the 1990s, the Spirit was moving in extraordinary and unusual ways. His presence would incite certain manifestations from the people. Problems would come, however, when people started to assume that every time God showed up, He would cause a certain manifestation to take place.

What does this look like? Simply put, when God shows up, we speak, act, sing, plan, dance, shout, kneel, laugh, shake, cry and do what we assume should be done in these moments. But what if our assumptions are wrong? Right off the bat, I am not saying that any of these responses or manifestations are incorrect.

I am of the opinion that all manifestational responses to the move of the Holy Spirit should not only be tolerated, but celebrated and welcomed! My stance on manifestations such as shaking, weeping, laughing or anything else is that when God Almighty—who touches mountains and causes them to tremble—touches frail human flesh, something is going to happen.

And yet, just because the Holy Spirit is moving in our midst, this does not mean we have the right to be like Peter and just speak … or manifest … or respond impulsively. So wherever you find yourself, from pastoring a church to leading a small group, from praying for someone to leading praise and worship, always be on the lookout for what God is doing.

Do what you know to do, yes. At the same time, when you reach those moments when there is literally nothing you can do or say—and God is undeniably moving in a most unusual way—just let God be God. Step back, listen and embrace the Spirit’s movement.

• We try to build tabernacles.

Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three sanctuaries: one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah … .”

First, Peter responded to the Transfiguration somewhat impulsively, not knowing what to say. When he actually does speak, the idea he presents certainly reflects the lack of thought invested in his words. Peter proposes a building project to house Jesus, Elijah and Moses.

Whether we know it or not, we commonly respond to the Spirit’s outpouring with building projects. This does not mean constructing church buildings, per se. It means that when the Holy Spirit moves unusually, our natural response is to try and build something around what He is doing. We assume that more meetings and more services are heaven’s guaranteed solutions to all unusual visitations of the Holy Spirit.

There is definitely a need for meetings, where as a community, we can all experience the wonderful outpouring of divine presence and power. Community is key, actually. We encounter God together. We pray together. We praise together. Here’s the thing, though. Even though there are numerous meetings, gatherings, services and conferences happening constantly, the most important Person who will ever be hosted at any event, in any place, is Holy Spirit. Sadly, He is not welcome at many of our so-called get-togethers, when in fact, He is the One we most desperately need. So, having meetings where the Holy Spirit is actually hosted and accommodated are wonderful!

At the same time, history reveals that the Spirit’s movement cannot be confined to meetings. He doesn’t want to remain trapped in a church building; He wants you to take your place as His portable temple and carry His presence into your everyday life. What takes place in a “revival” service or Holy Spirit encounter meeting is essential, as it awakens you to the Presence of the One who lives inside of you.

When you encounter Him, experiencing the nearness and power of His presence, you are reminded of Who lives inside of you … and you are emboldened to carry Him into your sphere of influence. You become awakened to the reality that Almighty God has placed His Spirit within you. As you live in the light of this truth, everything changes!

Point of Breakthrough: Be OK With Not Knowing What to Do

When God shows up, the most important thing we can do is be OK with not knowing what to do. In fact, it’s perfectly legal not to know what to do when God reveals Himself in a powerful way.

The Western church has a huge issue with not knowing what to do, or doing nothing. We feel the need to fill in the gaps with something, be it music, noise, preaching, an altar call, an offertory—just something to fill in the silence so things don’t get awkward.

But what if God is drawing us into new depths of encounter with Him? There is a time for us to respond, yes. There is also a time for us to respond by not responding. To not respond is to simply bask in awe of One who is so great and glorious that our lack of response is actually the most fitting response!

Larry Sparks is author of the book Breakthrough Faith: Living a Life Where Anything Is Possible, and co-author of the upcoming book The Fire That Never Sleeps, with Dr. Michael Brown and John Kilpatrick (June 16). Larry is a columnist for Charisma, teacher and revivalist who is committed to training the body of Christ through three key seminars: 1) Sustaining a Lifestyle of Revival, 2) Revival in Media, and 3) Breakthrough Faith. Featured on CBN, TBN, and Sid Roth’s It’s Supernatural, Larry is passionate about raising up communities who usher in regional revival and awakening. You can visit his website at . Also, you can “like” Larry on Facebook (LarryVSparks) and Twitter @LarryVSparks to receive empowerment keys to experience and sustain a revival lifestyle.

While I am completely against police brutality, racial injustice, and the overall breach of due process in our modern culture; I am also against the hypocrisy taking place right now. Quite frankly, I am disturbed! Not only am I disturbed by the police brutality, the premature death of young men and the failure of Justice, but I am also disturbed by the reaction of the black community. 

There has been an overwhelming lack of moral and spiritual leadership in the black community. There has been a deep-seated hypocrisy among us that few are willing to admit. I agree that the death of Freddie Gray was extremely tragic (yet another male dead unnecessarily), but the truth is, there have been thousands of young black males killed in the city of Baltimore: not at the hands of abusive police, but at the hands of other black men. 

Hundreds of black men in these communities have been killed by gang members (the same gang members who are rioting), drugs and other forms of violence, yet where is the outrage over these deaths? I am sure that there are those who speak out against such things, but it is nowhere near the reaction we are seeing in the wake of recent events. 

Why? What makes people feel justified in rioting, looting, and defying authority in the name of “social justice,” when these same violent crimes have committed by the hands of people in their own community? Is this what Justice looks like? Is this what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had in mind for the 21st century? Is a black man only considered a “social martyr” if he is killed by the police? Are the deaths of hundreds of young people insignificant if they are killed by people of the same skin color? 

I believe that the rioting and protests (not the peaceful protesting) are extremely hypocritical. Don’t get me wrong, I believe much of the frustration is founded, but where is the visceral response to these types of tragedies within our own communities? Where is the outrage when young teens are killed in drive-by shootings? Where are the civil rights leaders when young black men are committing crimes? Why is there not an emphasis on keeping young men out of the judicial system so that tragedies like this never happen? 

If we are so concerned with the future of black youth, why is there not a serious dialogue among black leaders about abortion (which happens to be one of the leading causes of death and depopulation among black people). Millions of black men are incarcerated and killed by the hands of other black men while we scream, “Hands up! Don’t shoot!” Baltimore has one of the highest crime rates in our nation, yet people are saying, “We won’t stand for this anymore!” How can they stand for hundreds or even thousands of black males being killed every day? 

This has been a clear ploy by race baiters to manipulate the black community into a state of social, moral, and spiritual irresponsibility. Black America has somehow bought the lie that they are not responsible for the condition of their own communities. 

It is much easier to react to what we perceive as injustice rather than to teach our young people how to be productive citizens. The question that no one is willing to ask is: Would most of these events take place if our young black men were in school or at home rather than on the street corners?
It is clear to me that there must be revival! There must be a spiritual and cultural awakening in our nation. 

We must receive the baptism of love that will cause us to treat our neighbors with respect and dignity. There must be an emergence of fathers who will teach their sons to respect themselves and to honor authority. The church must challenge our communities to break free from the shackles of poverty and ignorance which are strong contributors to violence. 

We must be lights and show the world the character of Jesus Christ so that they will know that there is a better way. Lord help us to see things from your perspective. #FreddieGray #Baltimore 

Kynan T. Bridges is the Senior Pastor of Grace & Peace Global Fellowship in Tampa, Florida, where he lives with his wife, Gloria, and their three children.