A Message from One of a Warning to Us All

I was awaken this morning with a message for all of us, especially to those who are parents, grandparents, educators, instructors and those who have  a platform to address the masses.

This message is one of frankness and one that many of us try so very hard to avoid saying because we worry about being “politically correct”.  It’s about the “true” evil that exists in this world and is all around us twenty-four hours a day.

It is time for us to stop pretending that we will ever be able to rid this world of evil.  Evil of any and all kind.  Even God Almighty is not able to accomplish this and if it is difficult for him, we all should admit that it is more than far outside of our range to eliminate.  In this life, there are and always will be good and evil.  Even though we would love to believe that evil only exist in a very small portion of us, we know for a fact that evil can immerse even the strongest of us. It’s time to stop this charade of thinking we can make laws to stop the evil because we know that we cannot.  Each and Everytime, we make a law to combat one form of evil a newer more advanced form takes its place.  Call it whatever you wish; terrorism, extremism, criminal or civil, it is still evil and it will never be eradicated. 

Evil can be defeated even if it can’t be controlled.  We can defeat evil by not hiding from it but facing it directly and staring it down.  Whether it appears in others or appears in ourselves.  We can defeat evil by making our children aware that it exist and covering as many instances on how to deal with it as we know how so that when our children are faced with it, they will already have a working idea on how not to yield to its power.  No evil is stronger than the weakest person.  It gains its power from those who are afraid to stand up to it or are no able to recognize it when it raises its ugly head.  It should be explained that evil can come in many forms from bullying to murder; from selfishness to stealing.  It should be explained that evil gains momentum and strength not because it is brave but because those who face it are too weak to call it out and drag it from the darkness into the light.

Whether you believe in God or a Supreme Being or not, if we can openly admit that evil exist and no amount of laws will ever stop it all, then we must also admit that the opposite is therefore true.  The opposite of evil is good.  My personal belief is that God exists and God is good.  He does not make bad things happen but he does make it easier to deal with them when they do.  He hides beauty in all that is not and he holds the light, showing us they way out of even our darkest of days.  While we are teaching our children to be able to recognize evil, we must also teach them to recognize good.  Allow them to choose for themselves which of the paths they will take without trying to control their every choice.

Many of us love to control everything and everyone but the only true control we have is over ourselves.  Don’t hate another because they are different than you.  Because they worship differently, think differently; feel differently because doing this brings out the true evil in you.  Respect the fact that God gave us all “free will” to think and act for ourselves.  Respect the fact that because of this, an individual will and must follow their own path.  Eternal life is there for all of us but only a few of us will choose it.  Others will choose to follow their evil thinking that it will somehow turn out different from them than it has for those who have travelled that path before.  They will want to believe that there is something special about them which will prevent them from falling too far down that “black hole” never to return.  Evidence that they are wrong is abundantly available to them but evil has blocked out rationalization and acceptance of this reality because if they were to see this clearly, evil would lose its grip on them and their darker corners would be replaced by the light.

Because evil exists, life will never be perfect but it can be better.  Better because we all are trying very hard every day to make it better for all of us.  Better because we are willing and able to listen, learn and compromise our issues away so that they will never return.  Better because it has stopped being about the “haves and have nots” and started being about equality, unity and keeping God’s words.  Fearing not evil because we have control over it because we have control over ourselves.  Fearing not what someone else can do to us but what damages we can do to ourselves.  Fearing not any mortal man or woman because their authority over us is not absolute and as they may be able to pass judgment upon us, our greatest ally is able to pass judgment upon them.

This may not be an easy message to take and God knows it was not an easy message to deliver but it is necessary because time is drawing near and if we were waiting on a time to begin getting our own house in order, the time is now.  Informing those who don’t know about evil are not a scary thing, it’s a good thing.  It prepares them for what they might face long after you are gone and can’t protect them.  It makes them aware that evil exists, how to recognize it, how to overcome it and how to really enjoy the good.  Preparation is the key to a decent life, for those coming after us, because the really scary thing is watching how ill-prepared they are and their reactions when they come face to face with evil and lose.