Word for the day "God will have the final say"
I Peter 5: 8-11 (MSG) Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.Grace and leadership along with many influential people are using their platforms to take stances against police brutality over these past few pain-filled months -- expressed their disappointment Wednesday, September 23rd, after a grand jury in Louisville, Kentucky, decided not to charge officers with killing Breonna Taylor.
"The white supremacist institution of policing that stole Breonna Taylor's life from us must be abolished for the safety and well-being of our people," Colin Kaepernick wrote on Twitter Wednesday, September 23rd, 2020.
Ms. Taylor, a 26-year-old Black emergency room technician, and an aspiring nurse was shot to death in March after Louisville police officers invaded her home and dismantled the door to her apartment while executing a late-night no-knock warrant in a narcotics investigation.Former police officer Brett Hankison, who was one of the officers involved in the shooting, was indicted on first-degree wanton endangerment charges for his actions on the night Breonna Taylor was killed. Two other officers who also fired shots during the botched March raid were not indicted, meaning no officer was charged in the killing.WNBA player Kayla McBride, a guard on the Las Vegas Aces, said the news is "a tough pill to swallow because it's a large part of why we're here."The league dedicated its 2020 season to Taylor and the Say Her Name movement, which raises awareness for Black female victims of police violence.Christian artists Lecrae tweeted "It’s all kind of numbing. On one hand, it’s like I KNOW I’m not crazy there’s a real problem in our country. On the other, I’m sad that everyone doesn’t see it and some don’t want to. Of course, I know God is at work. It’s just tough to process it all. #BreonnaTaylor Raymond Chang, president of the Asian American Christian Collaborative, believes “there are two ways” to look at what happened. There are two ways to look at the circumstances around Breonna Taylor's killing. 1) Police followed the protocols. 2) The protocols, in a racialized framework, led to Taylor's death. Also, why get rid of no-knock warrants & pay out $12 million if there wasn't something wrong?Approximately a month ago, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron walked across a red carpet in Washington D.C., and into the national spotlight. “Good evening,” Cameron said to the Republican National Convention audience, beaming in a sharp blue suit. “My name is Daniel Cameron. I’m 34 years old, and the first African-American attorney general in Kentucky history.”Back home in Kentucky, Cameron was facing pressure to charge three Louisville police officers in the killing of Breonna Taylor. But on stage at the RNC, Cameron was triumphant, singing the praises of President Trump and helping the GOP in its effort to portray itself as inclusive and diverse. “Republicans will never turn a blind eye to unjust acts,” Cameron said, in a brief nod to the turmoil in his home state.In many ways, Cameron is the fulfillment of Trump and the GOP’s vision of American justice. To them, equity is about carrying out justice using a broken justice system. To them, the real uprising of Taylor’s killing is the public dissent.To them, Black and brown people in an urban area like Louisville have no legitimate claim to justice. “The criminal law is not meant to respond to every sorrow and grief,” Cameron said as if Taylor’s death was just a sad thing that happened.On the surface, he was speaking to reporters, activists, and to Black people dismayed by the lack of charges. But it was just as easy to hear his words as an attempt to please the white Republicans who put him in power, to deliver what they envisioned of his service.Attorney General explains Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and officers Brett Hankison and Myles Cosgrove forced their way into Taylor’s home, where Taylor was with her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker. Walker fired one shot that hit Mattingly in the leg, and the officers responded by firing 32 gunshots into the apartment, six of which hit Taylor.The discrepancies in the accounts of what happened during the Louisville shooting center on whether the officers gave a warning before they entered and if Walker and Taylor actually heard that warning or whether they thought they were being attacked. At this point, only officer Hankison was convicted of shooting in the neighbor's home, not Ms. Taylor's home, and the other officers were exonerated.What really hurts for those of us fighting for justice is that on the same day September 23rd, 1955, Emmett Till's murderers were acquitted, with Breonna Taylor murderers now acquitted on September 23rd, 2020, Sixty-five years later America's justice system still perpetuates these reprehensible atrocities on black lives.God bless Attorney-General Cameron Daniels; He will like all of us, have to live with his aspirations, affiliations, choices, and decisions.In the meantime, our prayers and full support are continually going forward for justice for Ms. Breonna Taylor's murder and we believe her Mother Ms. Palmer, and family deserve much better. This is obviously another sad time in the history of America and for justice. This is again why elections matter, not just for the president. We must vote up and down the ballot by November 3rd, 2020.
Quote: The most disrespected person in America is the black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman.” Malcolm X #BreonnaTaylor
Special thanks!
Pastor James Baker, Jr. and our leadership team are especially thankful for those of you who provided financial donations and support in the month of September 2020, by partnering with us in efforts to advance the kingdom of God in this 21st century season: Special thanks to Ms. Cynthia Waiters-Artis, Ms. Annette Straker, Ms. Rita McGuffin, Mr. Kenneth Washington, Ms. Darlene Simmons, Ms. Mable Bazemore, Ms. Evelyn Rosado, Ms. Itholear Abbott, Mrs. Barbara Mason, Ms. Theresa Lewis, Ms. Jeanette Grant, Ms. Judith Battle, Ms. Angela Battle, Ms. Evonne Bazemore, Ms. Rita McGuffin, Mr. William Jones, Mr. Stan Harewood, Ms. Angie Scraders-Murphy, Mr. Calvin Jackson, Mr. Calvin Griffith, and Ms. Gertrude Scott.Thank you for using the word cup devotionals brought to you through Grace and Truth Leadership. Why don’t you take the opportunity to write to us on our blog and let us know how we are doing in serving you.We are a faith-based, donor-supported ministry. If you have been touched by these daily devotionals and would like to make a monthly pledge or a special gift of any amount, please use the donate link above to give as the Lord leads.Follow me on Twitter @James Baker_jr as I endeavor to encourage and empower leaders of today and tomorrow!Kingdom Blessings,