"Erase the Hate," but How?

(This picture was taken back at our previous home in Virginia. There is no technical relevance between this picture & this post).

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Clay & I were watching TV (this is the first time we have cable in years; we only have it because it comes with our house utilities LOL) tonight, & a music video commercial came on expressing their burning desire to "erase the hate" of this world.

Parts of the music video said, "now is the time, time for a change...time to reflect and improve our ways, join hands together, and erase the hate. We need the people that cause the reactions. We need the leaders who speak to the youth, bringing equality, courage, and truth. This is the time to peacefully say, we need solutions and we need a change...erase the hate and stand for a cause."

This music video immediately shifted my 8:30pm "relaxed" mind to my "analyzing & deciphering" mind mode. The lyrics vividly stood out to me, & here is why:

"Now is the time, time for a change...time to reflect and improve our ways, join hands together, and erase the hate."

Why is now the time? Why was the time not, say, 3 years ago? I mean, maybe it was. Maybe we all just needed a reminder "now." I can take a pretty valid educated guess as to why "now" is the time per this music video, but I am not turning this blog into a political stance. As I know, opinions are opinions, & the odds of changing someone else's to match one's own, is slim to nothing. Try changing someone's mind in that regard - you may just find that creates the hate. More importantly, how can one "join hands together" to "erase the hate", if our society is conditioned to "stand for what you believe in, at all costs." We as humans tend to not know how to join hands with someone who does not have the same outlook as us, whether it be the topic of politics (republican or democrat), social issues (pro-life or pro-choice), domestic policies (gun control), health care issues, economic issues (equal gender pay), etc. I find that we as humans tend to categorize people's entire existence of worthy or unworthy of "you can't sit with us" based on their stance on any of these above topics.

"We need the people that cause the reactions. We need the leaders who speak to the youth, bringing equality, courage, and truth."

Who are "the people" that can cause these reactions? My presumption: someone who has a public platform. But WHY? Why does it have to be someone so very specific? Why can't it be me, or you, or your elderly neighbor next door, or your ten year old son? It can be. Are we all not a leader to someone? I do not have to be the President of the United States, or a degree-certified educator, or an officer in the military to be a "leader." We do not just need the stereotypical "leader" who can speak to the youth of today to display fairness (or lack thereof - because seriously, life is and always will be unfair), bravery, and facts. Maybe that is why many of this world become frustrated with the "leaders." One expects these front-runners to do the dirty work & "erase the hate" in the way that specific individual wants to see it done, & when it isn't, the hate only increases.

"This is the time to peacefully say, we need solutions and we need a change...erase the hate and stand for a cause."

This statement cannot be truer: "this is the time to peacefully say." Again, I am not about to dig into the outbreaks we have seen in the past 2 years regarding various public events that most individuals are well aware of, but, they were anything but tranquil. Sure, they united one side of the storm, but is that really unification? Unification is the process of being united or made into a whole. A whole. 48% or 74% of the whole is not the whole. But, can this world ever unite at a 100%?

Finally, "erase the hate and stand for a cause" is somewhat contradictory (to me). "Stand for a cause" is vague. "A" cause to one person who strongly believes in that said cause, can have zero relevance to another person that has no belief, or a contrary idea of the said cause. If one person stands for the opposite side of the cause, can that "erase the hate?" We already touched on the topic of opinions. So in (my) reality: unless we all become programmed to think, see, & feel the same way about every aspect of life, there may never be a big enough eraser for the animosity and separation this world has.

Yes, I understand the music video was most likely more of a "feel good" vibe, & a goal to get everyone to jump on the "erase the hate" October hayride, but after those "feel good" feelings subside, then comes the "uh wait, but how, actually?" I will answer my own question of "how?" How can we even attempt to essentially "erase the hate?"

One word.

God.

Yes, one can dispute me & say that this one word does become more complex, as some do not believe in that word, therefore it is not a complete 100% whole unification. And I would say this is a valid dispute. John 17:23 says "I in them and you in me - so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me."

The goal of this world is for each and every person to become one heart & mind, just as God & Jesus became one. This (to me) seems to be the same goal this music video could be aiming for, but since it was not articulated in that sense, I am not confident that was their message.

Sometimes there are no explicit answers, but what I do know is that kindness outdoes hostility,

humility outshines intolerance, & love (& I believe God is love) always wins.