Blessed be God.
Praise be to Jesus Christ—now and forever. Amen.
Come, Holy Spirit.
Fill us with joy.
Set our hearts ablaze with your presence.
Look around.
Our hearts begin to ache.
Disrespect. Bigotry. Prejudice. Hatred. Violence.
The world groans under the weight of sin.
And we ask—where is God?
Let me take you back. Northeast Louisiana University.
ULM. Early 1980s.
Two young men—one a football player, one in a fraternity—drawn to the same young woman.
They didn’t talk. They chose testosterone.
Behind the tennis courts, they gathered.
Football players and fraternity brothers gathered around.
And the crowd came too.
Hundreds of students.
Not to stop the fight.
But to watch it.
To cheer. To feed the fire.
They circled. Glared. Waited.
But they didn’t fight.
They decided to let the young woman decide.
And she said goodbye to them both.
The crowd came for violence.
But the young men chose dignity.
And the young woman chose wisdom.
That moment stayed with me.
Because, crowds still gather.
For conflict. For chaos.
And many hearts have forgotten the voice of God.
Habakkuk cried out:
“Violence!”
“How long, O Lord? I cry for help, but you do not listen.”
We cry the same.
Destruction. Discord. Division.
And we ask—where is God?
But the Lord answers:
“Write down the vision. It will not disappoint.
If it delays—wait for it.”
Wait for it.
Because the just one—because of his faith—shall live.
The world is restless.
Many do not know God.
They do not want to.
They follow their own truths.
Not the truth.
Not the way.
Not the life.
And the deceiver laughs.
He laughs when we confuse freedom with selfishness.
When we trade reverence for rebellion.
When we say, “My truth,” instead of “Thy will be done.”
But we are not called to follow the crowd.
We are called to follow Christ.
The apostles cried, “Increase our faith.”
And Jesus gave them a mustard seed.
Tiny. Hidden. Powerful.
“If you have faith the size of a mustard seed,” He said,
“You could say to this tree, ‘Be uprooted,’ and it would obey.”
Faith doesn’t need to be loud.
It needs to be alive.
Faith doesn’t need applause.
It needs obedience.
So what are we obliged to do?
To stir into flame the gift of God.
To guard the truth.
To bear hardship for the Gospel.
To live with power, love, and self-control.
To say, “If today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts.”
To walk away from the field.
To refuse to fight for pride.
To choose the way of peace.
Because the world is watching.
The crowd is gathering.
And the deceiver is laughing.
But the just one—because of his faith—shall live.
So go now.
Live with goodness that speaks louder than words.
Let holiness be the quiet light in your eyes.
The kindness in your hands.
The mercy in your steps.
Preach the Gospel—
Not just with your lips,
But with your life.
With the way you forgive.
With the way you serve.
With the way you love—especially when it’s hard.
Let your life be the sermon.
Let your love be the witness.
And let Christ be seen in everything you do.
Blessed be God.
Praise be to Jesus Christ—now and forever. Amen.
Pray
Lord, in a world of violence,
Make us people of peace.
When others follow their own truths,
Help us cling to Yours.
When the crowd waits for chaos,
Let us be the ones who walk away.
Increase our faith, Lord.
Even if it’s just a mustard seed.
Let it be enough.
Amen.
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