What Can I as a White Man Learn From a Black Woman?
As a white male, I mostly feel like I should be careful about what I say. I’m often chagrined at what I hear other white men say. I want to spend time learning from those whose perspective and race is different than my own.
I met LaShondra Riddle eight years ago. Her voice is clear and her perspective is one I want to learn from. As a Black woman, she has struggled with the issues confronting our nation all her life. As a Christ-follower, she seeks to hear from God what he thinks.
I’ve asked her to write what will be a series of posts. I asked her to introduce herself and she does so here.
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For the past 6 years, I have been on a journey with the Lord, working to heal major traumas and personal injustices in my life. Most days, my heart is still a mess before the Lord as I continue to make my way through this wilderness season He has me in. It’s been painful, but He has also been faithful.
Growing up in churches that primarily preached prosperity gospels, I did not have a theology that could hold up against the depth of trauma I experienced in 2014. As a result, my concept of God and who He is got obliterated and has had to be rebuilt from the ground up. Most days, it feels like God is still working on getting the foundation right and level.
And yet, during this time, my perspective has shifted a great deal and I have found such comfort in getting to know Jesus as Judge; the one who will bring forth righteous judgment to confront oppression and injustice in the earth and make wrong things right and what it is to entrust my (our) case to Him.
This shift in perspective is what has helped me when thinking about and discussing the present racial issues and climate in our nation. I am black and I live in a country and system and among people who do not always value black people (and even more concerning, among people who may want to root out black people from the earth altogether).
And yet, in spite of this, I have been able to engage with the current issues at hand without being bogged down in anger and bitterness because I am learning what it is to not only entrust my own cases of injustice to Jesus, but also what it is to entrust the case of the entire black race to Jesus.
I’m learning how to rest in the knowledge that there is coming a day where He will make all things right. And actually have that be sufficient and satisfy my heart, so that I can do the things that He has called me to, in the Spirit in which He has called me to do them.
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Thanks Seth. We read LaShondra’s post on the alumni page. Her heartfelt, Christ centered, biblically sound perspective was both refreshing and enlightening. We all need a deeper understanding of individual experiential truth as it relates to the Truth. We look forward to hearing more from her.
Hi, Seth!!! Of course I had to stop and say something! This is beautiful and I take comfort that knowing my brother’s & sister’s in Christ are too staying in the race. I know exactly what Lashonda is saying about the Lord changing her pespectives. The Holy spirit is constantly reminding me that I was created just for these times. To provide comfort and empathy. To influence people to do good…so much to say but I look forward to reading more as well!
Yes, we do, Brian.
Thanks for the encouragement, Tanisha. You were created for these times!
I look forward to her insights and appreciate what she has already said. Having experienced trauma and injustice of my own, I totally agree we need to put it all in God’s good and capable hands.