”

I MATTER

Points that need to be made about diversity in the

church whether the congregation is black , white,

or any other colour.

If I was sky blue pink I would feel the same.

Please don’t think this doesn’t matter.

What I have to say here matters very much. It

needs to be said to the churches.

Please don’t assume this is for a church of any

colour, culture, denomination or social

background.

This is written for the Christian church at large.

We are all one big family if we are in Jesus but

sometimes some of us feel like we are orphans

rather than adopted sons. Let’s make the family the

family that is really different from the world. We

are all joint heirs of the Kingdom.

CHURCH

My colour matters. My race matters. My cultural

background matters.

I matter.

I have equal rights to salvation and my church

setting is as good as yours if the Holy Spirit is

present.

My service is as anointed as your service if the

Holy Spirit is present whether it is quiet or noisy.

How I teach or preach or how I get taught or

preached at may not be how you teach or preach or

get taught or preached at, but it is the power of

God in the message that is the important thing not

how loudly or quietly I deliver the message.

I have (hopefully,) put as much prayer and as

much preparation in as you have. My Pastor put as

much prayer and preparation in as yours did.

Anointing does not come in a proportion to how

loudly or quietly we deliver what we have been

given to deliver.

We do not get saved or changed according to how

loud or quiet the message is. The Word of God

does not return void.

Please do not assume I will not do what you do,

enjoy what you enjoy, or not want to be part of

your group in church.

Please make me welcome whoever I am and make

sure I am not left out of things because I am

younger/older/fatter/thinner/able/disabled/not your

race or culture/not your social status/don’t look

like you/have a different situation to you/dress

different to you. Like you,.

I want to be included in the family!

COUNTRY

My colour matters. My race matters. My cultural

background matters. I matter.

I love my country as much as you love your

country.

Please do not insult my country by running it

down in front of me. There are things wrong with

all countries and I feel like you do when I insult

your country and race when you insult my country

and my race. Don’t you know we are all sinners

saved by grace?

My language matters. It is as important as your

language.

When you speak in your language in front of me

and I am in my own country I will think you are

talking about me and hiding things from me.

It tells me I am less important than you are.

The polite way is to speak in the language that is

common to all when there is one common

language. If I come to your country and know your

language that is what I should use.

HOME

My home matters. How I live matters. My way of

doing things matters. I matter.

Where and how I live matters. Just because I don’t

have a house like your house please do not assume

I am not as good as you.

Jesus was born in a stable and probably lived in a

house made of mud and it was good enough for

him. God will never judge us on the size or type of

house we own.

FAMILY

My colour matters. My race matters. My cultural

background matters.

I matter.

My family matters. Please don’t make disparaging

comments about how people treat their family in

my culture because all cultures are different and

don’t you know that a family is itself a culture and

I may not behave like you are implying I behave?

My marriage matters.

My marriage is as good as your marriage whatever

country I got married in.

Please don’t tell me my marriage is not as good as

your marriage because of the customs of my

country. I am married to my husband/wife if I have

one, in the sight of God.

My children matter and God loves them as much

as yours and I am trying to do the right thing to

bring them up as Christians just as you are so

please don’t assume mine are less good than yours

because of what you do in your culture.

Children misbehave and behave in all cultures.

FEELINGS

My colour matters. My race matters. My cultural

background matters. I matter.

My feelings matter. How I express my feelings,

happy or sad is as important and as right as how

you express your feelings.

Your culture keeps them in and mine keeps them

out or my culture keeps them in and yours lets

them out. God knows the heart and will sort us all

out so don’t tell me my way is less Godly than

your way.

Don’t assume I am less spiritual than you are

because of how I express my feelings.

Anyway, we are all individuals and I might not be

the same as you think everyone else in my culture

is.

What happened to me affected me as it affected

me. I deal with it how my culture deals with it and

please don’t assume God will heal me by the same

process God healed you.

Some of us need to talk more and some less. Some

need lots of prayer and some a little. God treats us

as individuals. God will sort us both out.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCES

My colour matters. My race matters. My cultural

background matters. I matter.

I feel upset when I am not represented in the

church picture. It tells me how unimportant to God

you think I am.

When you present that picture with people who are

not like me and are all like you on the church

poster it tells me I am not welcome where you are.

When you show me a picture where there is one of

me and a lot of you it tells me I am the odd one

out. This is called tokenism and it is NOT

‘multicultural.’

How I look is important to me. I may have an

older face, less limbs than you have or what you

term a physical imperfection. God made me and

loves me how I am. Why should I be more hidden

than you are just because I am not like you?

ENJOYING LIFE

My colour matters. My race matters. My cultural

background matters. I matter.

My music and what music I like whatever my

colour is as important as your music whatever

colour you are. I would like my kind of music

played in church and not just your kind of music

even if I am the only person in church of my race

or colour. Why should all the worship in church be

your kind of worship?

How I dress, whatever my race or colour, is as

important as your kind of dress. My hair is as

important as your hair.

My make up is as important as your make up.

What I eat is as nice as what you eat and if I like it

seasoned well then I do and if I don’t I don’t and

please do not throw away what I cook because it is

not what the rest of the church would cook or eat,

and vice versa. My taste is as important as your

taste. Please remember my taste as well as yours at

church functions. I get hungry too!