Spacehog - “In The Meantime”. You remember this tune? The bass and guitar riffs were amazing and definitive of the tune. So much can be learned from this.

Today was a stormy day in Minneapolis. Rain stopped and started, clouds rolled in and out, and a tornado flattened parts of the North end of town. When there was a break in the downpour, I took a walk outside my apartment to go grab a pack of smokes. Over the rumble of distant thunder claps, I heard the voices of this parade.

You see, in addition to the unsettled barometric pressure was a tension caused by  the outcome of a governmental deliberation over the meaning of the word “marriage”.

Last night, after the aforementioned debate that lasted late into the evening, the Minnesota House passed a proposed constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

Voters will decide the question in November 2012.

Opening this session was a prayer by Pastor Bradlee Dean. Dean’s prayer implied that President Obama was not a Christian. Dean referred to Jesus Christ as the “head of the denomination … as every president up until 2008 has acknowledged. And we pray it in Jesus’ name.” Many described this prayer as being “hateful”. I agree.

As I sat at my computer and watched/listened to the words coming out of Dean’s mouth, my heart sunk. Much of me wondered if God felt the same wrench that I did.

Because, I know a few things…

I know that God hears our prayers. Jesus promised that (Matthew 7:7-11). I also know that God sees what lies beneath the words that come out of our mouths (Matthew 15:8 - “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”).

I can’t count the times that I have brought selfish petitions to God in prayer and apologized for them later. It is so embarrassing to tell God how to do his job. It’s even more humiliating when I realize that my agenda is purely my own.

Side note…

On a routine basis, I find myself complaining about those who share the same faith as I do. I feel pigeon-holed by radical preachers, tv and radio hosts (and the owners of the stations) and pseudo-political reverends and chaplains. I ultimately sit back in defeat. Surely, we Americans would never blanket an entire spiritual following by the acts of a few… :smirk:

But back to what I know…

I never went to seminary. I’ve never stayed up late cramming for Greek and Hebrew tests. I’ve never poured over pages of lineage or begats. But, I HAVE read everything that is printed in red (some Bibles print Jesus’ words in red).

In my Bible, the red words say that I am supposed to love my neighbor. There is no caveat about us having the same background, belief system, sexual orientation, etc. Also, in my Bible, the red words say that I am not to judge AND that the last will be first. I can think of a crowd of people who marched down Hennepin who have spent most of their lives feeling like they’ve been placed back of the proverbial line.

The uncanny thing about the words in red is that, the more I read them, the more my heart starts to lean towards those actions naturally. That is why I wonder if God’s heart is breaking too.

I’m not a pastor. I’m no theologian. I’ll never be invited to open the House in prayer. But, if I were given that opportunity, I think my prayer would go: “Forgive us Father. We know not what we do.”

So, how did I spend my afternoon?

I marched down Hennepin with my neighbors and allowed myself to feel a tiny bit of the rejection that they’re feeling. I also joined with the smiles of people honking car horns, whistles and waves saying “We’re all human. We’re all equal. We’re all important.” And I eventually made my way back to buy those smokes…

“Here She Comes” by Ryan Paul & THE ARDENT. New song for us. Still working out kinks…

“Sweet Emily” by Minor Kingdom. Live at Maude