Piloting Faith: Good Trouble

I've been among the privileged to be with Rep. John Lewis on a few occasions over the past few years. During many of the meetings, I listened to him tell a story of when he as a young teen. He would go to visit places like Selma or Birmingham or Montgomery. He would see signs on the building entrances that said, “Whites Enter Here,” and “Blacks Enter Here.” When he went home, he would ask his mother and father why those signs existed. They said, “That is just the way it is. Don’t get in the way. Don’t get in trouble.”

But one day, he read about Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr. He was inspired on that day to go out into the world and get in trouble – necessary trouble, good trouble – to change the world. At his core, he believed in the goodness of the human soul. His relentless faith in our capacity to love one another is indeed what has changed the world for good. 

Let that be our lesson on this day as we say goodbye to an Elder, a wise soul who spoke of love, justice, and equality until his last breath. Because of all he taught us, we must be brave in the face of injustice and vow that we, too, will get in the way for good. 

I thank God for the life of Rep. John Lewis. We are better because he was among us. May the same be said of each of us.

Cameron