Dear Editor,
I feel that the people who are praying are not the ones who should be praying. Rather, those who God will hear when they pray should pray for the nation. Those who are heard when they pray should pray for those who were not qualified to pray - God will hear them and heal the nation.
Remember, it is still true that: "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray, then I will hear from heaven and I will heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7:14).
It seems that whenever we have a crisis, we call for the executives to pray, but let me not hesitate to say that God is not impressed by big names or bureaucracy or the title "executive", or even religious titles; such titles are very common today, giving the appearance of power to many who hold a religious rank in the various places of worship.
I feel that God will prefer to hear from a little barefoot boy or girl, or anyone who humbles himself before God and pray. God will hear this little boy or girl's prayer and heal the nation, but don't go before God with some big name such as the reverend doctor or council member this or that and expect God to listen just because of the name you have attached to you.
You must humble yourselves, turn to God, away from your wicked ways, and then He will hear you in Heaven and heal the land.
I'm wondering, if God were to send someone to find 10 righteous persons in the Bahamas, could they be found?
Some love to pray standing in the synagogues and speaking things to tickle the ears of those who are listening and they actually believe that they will be heard for their great speaking (Matthew 6:5). We actually need to get out from the walls of a building called the church and take the Church of Jesus Christ with us in the streets.
We preach in our alligator skin shoes and expensive suits when we stay in the walls preaching in our $700 expensive suits and ties and the people who should be hearing us, especially the young people like the young man in Grants Town, Pinewood, Kemp Road, are not hearing us. They are still so unreachable.
What are we doing to reach them? Their hearts and their spirits are broken. God says in his word that he draws near to those who are broken in spirit. Are we cultivating the holy spirit like Jesus Christ did, or are we so caught up in our own agenda and only appearing to have concern, while saving of lives is not a part of it?
What about the young people, especially our young men, who are being shot down every day? Let us get to them by getting from behind the walls. Let's go in the streets and reach them. Touch a young man on the shoulder on Peter Street, Kemp Road, Pinewood, Elizabeth Estates or Bain Town and when he turns around, he is looking into a preacher's face.
Show them that you care. Find out what we can do and how we can help them. Pray with them, ask them what they want first from God and what they want from the nation. If we do this, then the murders will stop. Remember preachers, Rev. Dr. this and Rev. Dr. that and council this and council that does not impress God.
Something has to be done about crime in this country. I'm not for capital punishment in its present state or how it is represented in the law of this country.
There are actually heinous crimes that merit the death penalty. I those cases, I have no objection. However, where a life can be saved and an individual allowed to be corrected and returned to society, that is a great success story.
Additionally, I don't think anyone (by himself) has the right to kill anyone as punishment for a crime that has been committed. But we as citizens and the ones among us hired to enact the judicial laws, do have to obey the laws of the lands and capital punishment is on the law books of this country.
One of the answers to crime is putting young people back to work. What about the young person (man or woman) who was arrested by the police and taken to court for allegedly committing petty crimes, but never convicted due to lack of evidence or some technicality? Often, the charge still sits on his record.
Chances are, no one went to court to testify against him/her and nothing ever came of the case. In some cases, these young people appear so many times before the court and finally the case is thrown out yet the matter still appears on his record.
He applies for a job and the character reference states that he was charged but he has never been convicted but the background check says that he was arrested by the police but it did not come to the trial. This is held against him and he cannot get the job.
This is not helping anyone, much less the individual who needs to work. He becomes a burden to his family, the community etc. because no one will hire him and he cannot get paid and thus cannot ever turn his situation around. No one wins like this.
What about cleaning out those old incomplete cases and cleaning up those character references so that young people can gain independence and a sense of dignity and find a means to take care of themselves? As it stands now, these petty crimes and background incidents have young people locked outside of the gate of employment.
I would suggest that the minister of national security, by regulation or by legislation, take a closer look at this and tweak and sweep those petty matters not only from these young people's records but also from their background checks so when they apply for a job, their record will be clean and allow them to enter the work force or allow them back into the workforce.
After all, the law itself says that one is innocent until proven guilty. This in itself is another way to win or fight the war on crime.
Also, bring the gang leaders together and find common ground through dialogue to end this war and bring peace to our nation. If we want to have a brighter future, we need to leave the past behind and go forward. Education and forgiveness are the keys. Let us forgive the young people like someone forgave us. (Matthew 6:14-15)
- David A. Fox
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