The video is a presentation of “Life Ev’ry Voice and Sing,” what many refer to as “The Black National Anthem.”  The Rev. Joseph Lowery quoted from the third verse of the song during his benediction at the Inauguration on January 20, 2009 when he prayed,

“God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, thou who has brought us thus far along the way, thou who has by thy might led us into the light, keep us forever in the path, we pray, lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met thee, lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we forget thee. Shadowed beneath thy hand may we forever stand — true to thee, O God, and true to our native land.”

As I watched the images, I couldn’t help but be propelled into a past that I only experienced on the surface (being born in 1964 living in Milwaukee, Wisconsin).  I couldn’t help but to feel some pain knowing the injustices that were wrought on innocent people just because of the color of their skin.  Yet, the video is full of images of power, in the midst of the injustices served, and in the midst of the hurt and pain I felt, I also felt proud for the progress we’ve made.

I think the video tells a powerful story.  As my student shared it with me, I’d like to share it with you.

I was watching a news program this past week that told the story of a town in which working, middle class families had to resort to standing in line to get groceries. Not at Kroger or Ingles or Publix or any other neighborhood grocery story. No, standing in a food line. The story told of one woman who had to quit her job because her income did not cover the gas, child support, and essential expenses she needed in order to sustain herself and her children. As I watched, I thought to myself, “That could be us.” At one point, that was Manchild.

Foreclosures are at an all-time high. Many people took out mortgages they could not afford. Many people had good intentions, taking out risky mortgages believing that in 2, 3, or 5 years their circumstances would change for the better and they’d be able to refinance their loans. Yet, the real estate market crashed, and so did the hopes and dreams of far too many homeowners who are now experiencing the devastation of losing their homes. As I write this, even celebrities are at risk. Watching these stories almost daily, I think to myself, “That could be us.” At one point, that was Manchild.

Overall, the credit markets are in a shambles, and the constituency who is bearing the brunt of the desolation are not just American consumers, but consumers of goods throughout the world. The causes of our economic situation are many. This is not meant to be a political commentary, yet personally, I trace what appears to be a crash of the American economy on poor policies and practices instituted and condoned by our current President. Moreover, big oil companies are pocketing increasing profits as the pocket books of American consumers become more empty each day. Wall Street gets bailed out while small businesses throughout the country have to fold because the cost of doing business continues to rise. At one point, that was Manchild.

We all know that things must change. Circumstances can’t change for the better fast enough. Based on daily news reports, however, times will get worse before they get better.

But there is something we can do. In seasons such as this, we can choose either to focus on what Manchild refers to in Steppin’ Out Of The Darkness as “the giants from the valley of Circumstance” or we can focus on “the Giver of Gifts” who can lift us up above them. While daily news reports may be bad – more than just figuratively – we may be embarking on a time in which God is forcing us, as Manchild says, to “…unearth the ‘forgotten dreams’ buried beneath the ‘abandoned visions’ still cluttering the ‘valley of sun-dried bones.’” In other words, what dreams and visions about your own destiny have you abandoned because Adversity struck once, twice, ten, twenty, or fifty times in your life? Might this be a time when you may need to discover “the reasons why you…fear what follows seasons of Change”? Manchild did it…why not you?

Steppin’ Out Of The Darkness is “a message of encouragement for seasons such as this.” A season in which God may be forcing you to “face your fears” and allow the dreams and visions He placed within you to finally become birthed. And as you allow those dreams and visions to become born again, expect “the ‘Giver of Gifts’ to do the unexpected when least expected.” The world needs you to overcome your own fears and embrace Change as we all face our own “giants from the valley of Circumstance. Will you begin your journey today?

I love what Ebele had to say about this as she commented on my last post (she didn’t mean to write a blog entry as she commented):

“War never did anyone any good. If war is so important to the leaders of the countries who initiate it, then let the leaders themselves go to war instead of sending other people to do their dirty work.

“In Africa, there are still some parts where the strongest man in the village fights the strongest man in the rival village to settle a dispute. And I say they had/have the right idea.

“Too many people are dying for too many avoidable stupid reasons – it’s all a distraction from the real things the world needs to be dealing with. Ghandi was able to settle disputes and put his point across without raising his fist. He chose to raise his mind and his spirit instead. He’s not unique in his view. There are lots of people – ordinary people – who want what he wanted. What his spirit still wants.

“I think women should rule the world. Or children. Children are little leaders in their own right. When you sit down and ask them a worldly question, they give you such a clear answer. (There’s a belief (I think it’s Yoruba) that the more recently you’ve come from your mother’s womb, the wiser you are.)”

And Lisa pointed me to Pink’s incredibly powerful performance of her song, “Dear Mr. President.” Please click on this link to Lisa’s post (which, for Lisa, was a Mother’s Day post) and watch it. It expresses much of what Ebele said above in a different way, but communicating the same sentiment. I watched it once, then had to watch it again. Lisa describes it as “breathless.” It is.

Finally, as my husband, Manchild, wrote to the President in his post, “Bring Our Brothers Home (Revised)”:

“Saying, ‘I was wrong,’ or ‘I made a mistake’ or ‘I’ve changed my mind’ just might produce the ’shock and awe’ you [Mr. President] sought when you initiated an escalating civil war that human hands will never win. As always, the choice to do so is yours alone to make. Only a bad wind refuses to change directions.”

Can the wind of the blogosphere permeate the atmosphere of the halls of our government in Washington? Let’s hope so.

Back in the 80s, I was a HUGE MC Hammer fan. I mostly loved his dance and choreography; I used to try to imitate him, and really was successful at times!

I discovered Hammer’s blog, on which was his video “Bring Our Brothers Home.” I found the images to be stirring, a little disturbing (not in a violent way at all). Yet, regardless of your political views on the war in Iraq, I really believe Hammer’s words say it all. Take a look.

If you’re having a problem with the video – like, it doesn’t show up, the link is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSNcG7jt6Wo