Sunday is “Stop the Violence Day”. I have been thinking and rethinking this particular day for a week or more. I, of course will post something on Sunday about the sentiment behind that day. But I do find that the cause deserves more than one day out of 365. Obviously, our world has gotten into such horrific shape that we have to designate one 24 hour period to remind us that we are doing something wrong.

  Violence is such a broad term. Violence can be physical; such as when nations go to war, or neighbors kill each other. Violence also occurs when people are battered and abused by a known aggressor. Violence occurs when anyone lays a hand or implement on another person with the intention to cause harm. Violence also arises when we speak harshly or negatively to another person, or being. So on this day and the days prior I am asking you to…STOP. Stop the insanity, stop the killing, stop the abuse, stop the hurtful speech …stop being intentionally cruel to anyone and everyone…including yourself.

  Our divine purpose is to love and uplift others, but if we can not manage that…can we just not tear them down? I think that is a short order.  If you can not be kind and peaceful with me…can you please just walk past me? We don’t have to kill each other out of some inability to communicate.

  I realize that war is big business. Once war starts for some reason it is hard to stop. Can we, for one day, put down our guns and weapons; can we turn off our fighter jets and tanks? When are we going to realize that MAN is a weapon of mass destruction?  If we LOL closely, we can see how true that statement actually is. Man seeks a target and is not happy until that target and any of its allies are dead. We are not content until the “enemy” no longer has a pulse. We kill out of greed, envy, desire,  stinginess and acquisitiveness. We do not see man as our brothers but as our competition. We compete for land rights, control over domain, passion and control of other people, places and things. We create or participate in bloodshed abroad and on our own soil. To make matters worse, we justify the unjustifiable. We will say we are fighting for our rights; the right to worship, the right to be in charge of or have power over, or have command of…anything and everything that gets in our way. This is simply a matter of man being greedy. We have eminent domain or control over nothing. We are not the creators of anything but chaos and death. The orphans left as a result of a war will never understand or believe that war is necessary. Given all of this…is one day of non-violence too much to ask?

  Is it too much to ask for our children to be safe on the streets that they live on? Is it too much to expect that we show responsibility for the shape our neighborhoods are in? Is it too wish for when we want to actually be considered innocent until PROVEN…not ASSUMED guilty? Am I asking too much when I tell you to stop making assumptions about who I am…without asking? Doesn’t our fellow man deserve more respect than what a racial profile allows? Is being loving to one another too much to ask or hope for?  When did we get so cold? Don’t we understand that God is not asking us to be loving…He EXPECTS it.

  Do we need a National or International Holiday to tell us to stop abusing our families? How many women and children have to die at the hands of their “loved” ones? We wouldn’t have to worry about how hard is TOO hard…if we didn’t at all. When abused women and children are hiding bruises or scars…they are just hiding the shame of the abuse. In fact, hiding the effects of abuse…only allows the violence to continue. We need to be aware of our surroundings. Ask the hard questions. Why does she wear sunglasses when it is cloudy? Why don’t they make eye contact? Why do they flinch when you try to touch them? Why are they isolating themselves? Don’t be afraid of asking the questions that they don’t want to answer.

  Domestic violence is an atrocity. One I am only too familiar with. It is a poison that no one should have to swallow…and yet we do. People we love…mothers, daughters and sisters…are dying everyday. Worse yet…they are being killed by people that we know….because they have no self control. People are not punching bags. LOVE DOES NOT HURT. And if it does…IT IS NOT LOVE. We need to start touching each others hearts. We have to support one another…because one day we may need that same understanding. And please do not allow yourself the opinion that it could or would never happen to you. No one ever asks or is deserving of this. Would you volunteer for a situation where you were made to feel that no one cares about you? Would you want to feel completely alone? No one should ever be made to feel isolated or alone. We are never alone…God is always with us. His expectations for us are crystal clear …love everyone…judge no one. Stop visiting the graves of the people we could have protected…had we not been afraid to get involved.

  God created us to look out for one another. He created us from love…it is the foundation of who we are. If peace seems difficult then we are not loving each other enough. Peace and love walk hand in hand…they keep us humane. Stop the violence because if we don’t…we are working against the will of God. I pray that my brothers and sisters find peace and love in everything they say and do…and may the hands of our Creator keep us on our path.