Lasting Change Only Comes with Changed Hearts

Share Now

This past weekend I was wrestling with a lesson for America the Beautiful. I’ve already covered American political history from the days of native nations through 9/11 and the presidency of George W. Bush. My next task is to write a lesson about the last dozen years of American politics. I keep wondering how to explain the present to children in middle school. I’ve started and restarted.

I confess that I have been dreading this lesson for some time. It’s not that there are not wonderful things to talk about from the last 12 years, it’s that there are some things I wish I didn’t have to say. That has been true in other time periods, too, of course, but this feels different. It is so now and these kids are living through it, too.

In addition to factual events from the last dozen years, I have wondered about including thoughts like these below. I would love to hear your reactions.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Every person who lives in America now and every person who has ever lived in America is either an immigrant or a descendant of an immigrant. On some unknown date, the first ancestor of America’s native nations set foot on the land that would one day become the United States of America. Those Americans and every American past and present have two traits that they share with the people living in every other nation throughout history:

God created man in His own image,
in the image of God He created him;
male and female He created them.
Genesis 1:27

. . . all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God . . .
Romans 3:23

The Bible teaches that we all have a common ancestor:

“. . . He made from one man every nation of mankind . . .”
Acts 17:26

Too often Americans and other people around the world have not believed that we are all valuable creations made in the image of God, that we all are sinners, and that we are all related to one another. Therefore some Americans have sometimes treated people who are different from themselves—in skin color, in nationality, in political party, in financial level, in level of education—as less valuable.

Prejudice is not new. Certain native nations had long-standing animosity toward certain other native nations. Some citizens would never consider voting for someone who is not in their political party. Some people who didn’t want to wear masks during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic mistreated those who did wear them and vice versa. Mistreating people due to prejudice is always wrong, no matter what the differences are and no matter who is pointing the finger at whom.

Many people have made great sacrifices to change laws to keep one group of people from hurting another group of people. Those who have sacrificed deserve honor and gratitude. Ultimately though, lasting change comes only with changed hearts. Jesus Christ taught how to solve the problems of people hurting other people when He gave the Golden Rule and the second greatest commandment. The more Americans who follow them, the better off all of us will be:

In everything, therefore,
treat people the same way you want them to treat you,
for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 7:12

You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Matthew 22:39b

Share Now