Puzzles and Racism

Raise your hand if you’ve tried a puzzle (or two) during Covid.

Me? I looked long and hard to find a puzzle with a picture I really liked – one I thought would be challenging (1,000 pieces), but have enough color differentiation that it wouldn’t drive me crazy.

Boy did I choose wrong! Can you SEE all the white and shades of gray???

Here’s the thing I know about myself. I’m a 7 on the Enneagram so I love EVERYTHING, but I’m not good at persevering and doing hard work on ONE THING over a long time.

Bottom line? This puzzle turned out to be a spiritual practice for me. It took me forever (honestly probably a month), and every day I wanted to give up, but I kept going – one more day, one more day. Note: I did not receive any help from John and for that I trust he’ll pay at the judgment day.

I prayed the discipline required to complete this project would translate into other hard areas of my life where I’m tempted to quit or take short cuts.

That’s why I’m sharing this with you. The challenges before us – fighting racism, changing unjust systems, rebuilding broken lives – are going to take hard work and dedication for the long-haul.

There will be many days when we can’t see progress.

Days when the pieces don’t seem to fit.

Days when it seems way too hard.

Days when we need to remind ourselves that our brothers and sisters of color have been suffering and carrying this injustice for hundreds of years!

The pieces of my puzzle, with little to indicate the picture it would become, sat on our dining room table mocking me. I wanted to ignore it, but right next to the messy pieces, was the box with the image of what I was working towards.

What’s the picture we’re working to create with God’s help?

It’s a picture of His kingdom on earth, one that won’t be complete until Jesus comes again to wipe away every tear and bring a new order (Rev. 21).

But until then, we’re turning to Him to strengthen and guide us to start piecing together a picture of the kingdom where we honor God’s image in everyone.

It’s a picture where love and justice reign.

Where racism isn’t tolerated.

Where the needy are seen and cared for.

Where people listen to each other with humility and respect.

With my puzzle, on the hardest days, just getting one or two pieces were enough to keep me coming back.

• Maybe the puzzle piece we find today is listening to the experience of someone who looks different from us, or reading up on white privilege or joining a webinar on anti-racism.
• Maybe today is the day we repent of abdicating responsibility and tacitly supporting racist systems.
• Maybe it’s signing a petition, or advocating – writing to a government official.
• Maybe it’s donating goods to a food pantry, or cleaning our streets in the aftermath of riots.
• Maybe it’s a peaceful protest or fervent prayer.

Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done.

“These are the very days for the prophetic resistance of our joy and hope, for the practice of the Kingdom of God right in the snarl of the ‘Not Yet.’”

Sarah bessey