Greetings!

" Make us to choose the harder right

instead of the easier wrong

and never to be content with a half truth

when the whole truth can be won."

West Point Cadet Prayer 

Our July issues will be the most critical and challenging issues we have ever cultivated. The information shared will inform the conversations you are having and how you think about a path forward. No stone will be left unturned. All perspectives presented will challenge everyone’s current narrative of race in America. Welcome to the Conversation . . .

As a nation, we need to grapple with race because the evidence is overwhelming that racial bias remains deeply embedded in American life. Race is the fulcrum upon which two radically different visions of America pivot. Brutality against Blacks has been a widely known problem for decades; the daily indignities we suffer are far greater than the occasional murders that have come to life. Recent events highlight our fear is not limited to the police. Assumptions of both men and women weaponize the black body. We are biased in access to business capital, housing, board rooms, education, employment, and the court system—each leading to unfair playing fields. Fortunately, the public’s appetite for change is more significant than many expected.

Now, before some of you say, “Don’t diminish what I have accomplished. I am reaping the fruit of my labor. I have worked hard to get where I am, and I also had to overcome odds ”; it is time to acknowledge that the ground tilled by some of you is more fertile than the ground others tilled. Each could have spent the same amount of time in the hot sun, watering the seeds and plowing the land, but you still reap better results because of certain advantages.

To quote Anne Wallestad, President & CEO, BoardSource, “Sadly, far too many are in exactly this position. A group of White people, desperately trying to make sense of a world around them that they don’t fully see or understand. Making decisions about hiring, strategy, programs, and organizational approaches that flow from their shared view of the world in a way that is invisible to them, but glaringly obvious to people of color.”

Today, I have added a new, section, Big Data, that looks at Blacks’ condition from a technical perspective, using big data to analyze age-old assumptions and beliefs. It will assist you in making the unconscious, conscious. 

I hope today’s curated materials will again encourage, educate, and engage you. I pray for peace and resolution in the land. Thank you for allowing me to speak a word of encouragement into your life. Ponder the principles as you live out your DESTINY.

Stay Upon the Wall ,



Dr. I. David Byrd

CEO, Destination Destiny



In this season of intentional listening, learning, and growing , Destination Destiny wants to invite you to be a part of the Faith & Prejudice movement. Faith & Prejudice is a movement of Christians who are committed to living a life of radical love and humility as demonstrated by Jesus Christ - the type of love and humility that confronts and dismantles racism in America once and for all. 

Beginning July 6 , Faith & Prejudice will host a  five-part Facebook Live special exploring the history of race in America and the impact of systemic racism on people of color. I invite you to tune in with us for these important discussions at the Faith & Prejudice Facebook page.

Join in dialogue with Andrew Young, Barbara Williams-Skinner, Tony Evans, John Jenkins, Latasha Morrison, Bryan Stevenson, Dr. Bernice King, Miles McPherson, and many more. For more information or to view the full schedule of discussions, please click here.

I told you July was going to be real, relational, and relevant. . .

Opening the Country has l ed to the Coronavirus surging out of control. It took 100 days to get t he first million cases, and just six days to go from 8 million to 9 million. There’s no doubt that the virus has the upper hand. Weather the increased testing is uncovering more and more infections, or the broadened testing is revealing not only more total cases, but also a higher rate of positive ca ses. The Coronavirus has mutated since it started spreading late last year, and a variant known as “G” is now dominant across the United States and the world.

As a result, families are still struggling with food insecurity, high employment and the need for essentials.

Please, consider joining us in providing for their needs.

 

Assist us in partnering with

Calvary Chapel and Feeding America.

We are providing essential food and items like toilet paper, batteries and laundry detergent to vulnerable communities as a result of COVID-19.

   

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Coronavirus Updates

We will provide these updates until they are no longer needed

Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Luke 23:34 NIV.

 

I’m often asked to explain white evangelicals by my friends of color as they try to untangle why their white Christians brothers and sisters behave as they do. 

 

For decades I have identified as an evangelical. For me, this has always meant declaring basic orthodox Christian beliefs, a firm commitment to the authority of scripture, but also a belief that I have a purpose in the world to share the good news of Jesus in word and deed.

 

Today, some 45 years after Jesus saved me and I began to follow Him, I struggle to identify as an evangelical, even though I have never wavered from the basic tenets mentioned above.

 

Those who study church history tell me that “evangelicalism” was formed to separate from the term “fundamentalism” which had meant being committed to the fundamentals of the Christian faith, but had since become tarnished and no longer seemed to represent the spark of Christian living in the world. A “rebranding” was needed.

 

Today when most people hear the term evangelical they think of conservative Republicans that are white, support Trump, are anti-gay, pro-life, and anti-science. 

 

Evangelicalism has become something else. Slightly over 80% of Americans self identity as Christians, only 20% identify as evangelicals.  In fact, at Barna, a research group studying the intersection of faith and culture, a person must identify 9 basic tenets of evangelicalism to be labelled as an “evangelical”... only about 5% of Americans meet those 9 requirements.  So as I speak about the white evangelical mind, consider that I am no longer certain of all that means, and I do not speak for everyone.

 

While there are many topics to explore, I want to focus on the white evangelical mind as it comes to racial injustice and reconciliation.

 

I began this reflection with the words of Jesus on the cross. Scripture records few words from Jesus while on the Cross, but what we have is powerful.

 

In this prayer of forgiveness, Jesus recognizes the ignorance of the people. And if I were to summarize the perception of white evangelicals in this moment, whether or not true, it is that we are ignorant people. But not just ignorant in the naïve innocent way, but in the sense that we believe we know more than we do. And that is an important reality I have had to come to grips with in my life, in some ways my evangelical beliefs make me falsely confident in my ability to know and understand what is true.

 

Tangle 1. The first tangle to recognize is that white people think little about “race .” We don’t think much about “ethnicity” either unless we are choosing what to eat for dinner… “You want to do Mexican or Chinese Tonight? Neither? Italian would be better?” In fact, we often see race and ethnicity as the same thing, so that is often a good place to start.

 

We were raised in the narrative of America as a melting pot, so our ethnic identity is seen as something from our past. We see American identity asking its citizens to lose some of that moving forward as you “melt.” It also means, for white Americans, that co-opting other cultures is okay too, because we are all in that same pot. Many immigrants gladly acculturate to the American way of life, my great grandmother did, which is a very different journey than that of African American slaves who were sold and shipped against there will to the US. White people have rarely thought about this experience.

 

I didn’t like Robin DiAngelo’s concept of “White Fragility” when I first learned about it, but now I understand it as a very real part of my own experience and what I see in other white people. As I began to be confronted about race, it was disorienting, I was indeed “fragile” because as a white person I’d never had to think about what it meant to be “white.” 

 

If you want to engage the white evangelical in racial reconciliation, it will require patience. We just haven’t had to think about race as long as minority groups and we are the weaker brother when it comes to this topic. The patterns of our white experience are predictable, and each person goes on almost an identical journey. Having conversations about race with a white person is like playing the same song over and over again, the first few times is great, and then it time to move on. I’m glad my friends of color didn’t abandon me even when I was worthy of being given up on. To this day they endure my ignorance as I seek to learn more.  I know too that it can be exhausting, but when you give the gift of friendship in this area to a white person, it is priceless.

 

Tangle 2. White evangelicals value theology as concepts, not as relational dynamics. 

Here’s what is hard, white evangelicals do not want to be viewed as racist. Our core theology recognizes the image of God in every person and desires for all to know him. There is great compassion too for meeting people’s needs, but we think of these things as concepts and programs instead of how those concepts transform interpersonal relationships. 

 

We were taught to debate ideas, to see things through a rational lens. Theological terms then became definitions and theological concepts thesis statements rather than guides for interpersonal transformation. Conversations about race in these forums rarely lead to transformation. But over time, they can move into more personal areas.

 

When engaging the white evangelical on matters of race, its best done in the context of relationship rather than as a topical matter when possible.

 

Tangle 3. American White Evangelicals have a strange relationship with power.  A significant part of the white Christian identity is the belief that America is a Christian nation and that we are losing the culture war. This has created a false pursuit of cultural power through political means rather than on the power of doing community good. Jesus was persecuted for doing good, unlike the White Christians in America who feel persecuted for being judgemental. 

 

This has given evangelicals the sense that they too are marginalized and in a fight for not just their “white” heritage, but its strange infusion with Christian values. This means that we are often ignorant to how we are participating in institutional or systemic racism, because we have a strange history with power, Christianity, and liberty.

 

Because we feel we are losing the Christian ideals, this country was based upon, we are trying to protect something we feel we are losing, rather than recognizing that perhaps we need to be living into those ideals more fully. Exposing white evangelicals to the truth of American history that has been sanitized is key to helping us grasp the horror of slavery and its aftermath in Jim Crow and beyond. Help us grasp the current racial injustice that is invisible to us as part of the dominant white culture. MLK realized it was hard for whites to see. His non-violent tactics provoked the racism that was hidden to whites so it could be seen. Camera footage, research of racial injustice experiences, sharing of stories all help us to see.

 

There is quite a bit to untangle in the white Christian mind, it’s not simple. If you can tolerate our ignorance, you can make great progress with those that are willing to continue the journey.  It isn’t the duty of persons of color to educate white people and help them transform. We need to be doing the work ourselves, but because our own attempts are messy, even hurtful, I am grateful for the investment you make in helping us become better people. While an element of white evangelicalism are indeed bad actors, there’s hope that something new can emerge as we engage these issues together in brotherly love.

 

Until that glorious day, Father, forgive us for our ignorance.

Mark Matlock has been working with the parents, ministers and non profits for nearly three decades and he’s spoken live to more than 1 million teenagers. He is the principal at WisdomWorks, a consulting firm that helps Christian leaders leverage the transforming power of wisdom to accomplish their mission. Mark is the former executive director of Youth Specialties and the creator of PlanetWisdom Student Conferences. In all his free time, he has written more than twenty books for teens and their parents including Faith For Exiles with David Kinnaman, President Barna Research.

The Bible is not merely a collection of independent books, but a single book that tells one big Story of God’s redemptive plan. Covenant Revelation is designed to provide you the basic framework of each book so you are equipped with an idea of the Story that ties each book together.

1 & 2 Chronicles 

 Judah During the Years of Monarchy

First and Second Chronicles communicates Israel’s entire history—its rulers, wars, religious events, economic cycles starting with the beginning of mankind. It is an executive summary of God’s covenant with David, and how things played out afterward. As you read First and Second Chronicles, you’ll see that the temple of God is the main location of interest: David plans it, Solomon builds it, kings are crowned in it, prophets are killed in it, and the law is rediscovered in it. The temple is center stage in the drama of Chronicles.

It is clear to even the casual reader that the books of First and Second Kings share a great deal of similarities with the books of First and Second Chronicles. So much so, in fact, that some wonder why it is that we have both of these accounts of Israel’s history in our Bibles. The fact that these two accounts of Israel’s history are given to different audience’s accounts for the contrasts between the two. First, while Samuel/Kings needed to show the people that the nation’s troubles were the result of their sinful disobedience rather than God’s abandonment of His people, Chronicles wanted to encourage the Israelites and help them turn back to worshiping Yahweh as the one true God.

Second, Chronicles focuses heavily on David and Solomon, to the tune of 29 chapters. When discussing these rulers, the spotlight is on their triumphs rather than their respective failures of adultery and idolatry. Though Chronicles does not whitewash history, it does deal more favorably with many of the kings of Israel.

 

A third distinctive is that Chronicles focuses primarily on the kings of Judah, the house of David, rather than the kings of Israel (remember, the kingdoms were divided after the death of Solomon). When the kings of Israel (the northern kingdom) are mentioned, it is because it has a direct connection to the narrative related to the exploits of Judah in the south. While it does not ignore the northern kingdom and the complex issues associated with it, the book of Chronicles sees Judah as the center of God’s work among His people.

Lastly, whereas Samuel/Kings acknowledges that God dealt with the wickedness of Israel’s kings by punishing even their descendants, Chronicles focuses on God’s dealing with obedient and disobedient kings within their own lifetime.



The overall purpose of Chronicles was not to browbeat an already dejected Israel, but to lift them up and point them back to God. This is why it is fitting that the book of Chronicles is the final book in the Hebrew Bible. By demonstrating for them how God is in control, the author of Chronicles seeks to inspire a return to proper worship and reverence for Yahweh, the God of Israel.

The theme verses of First and Second Chronicles are:

 

“ He [Solomon] shall build for Me a house, and I will establish his throne forever.”  (1 Chr 17:12)

“Thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I am bringing evil on this place and on its inhabitants, even all the curses written in the book which they have read in the presence of the king of Judah. Because they have forsaken Me and have burned incense to other gods, that they might provoke Me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore My wrath will be poured out on this place and it shall not be quenched.” (2 Chr 34:24-25)

SOURCE: The Parallel NIV KJ Bible, Jensen's Survey of the Old Testament, Life Application Bible Notes, Matthew Henry Commentary, Scofield's Notes, Moody Bible Commentary, Theological Bible Commentary

In 2018, Duke University’s Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity and the Insight Center for Community Economic Development published a report called “What We Get Wrong About Closing the Racial Wealth Gap” that examined the common misperceptions about the causes of the racial wealth gap and presented data and social-science research that refutes them all.

The study shows that the racial wealth gap is not about poverty . Poor white families earning less than $27,000 a year hold nearly the same amount of wealth as black families earning between $48,000 and $76,000 annually. It’s not because of black spending habits. Black Americans have lower incomes over all but save at a slightly higher rate than white Americans with similar incomes.

It’s not that black people need to value education more. Black parents, when controlling for household type and socioeconomic status, actually offer more financial support for their children’s higher education than white parents do, according to the study. And some studies have shown that black youths, when compared with white youths whose parents have similar incomes and education levels, are actually more likely to go to college and earn additional credentials.

But probably most astounding to many Americans is that college simply does not pay off for black Americans the way it does for other groups. Black college graduates are about as likely to be unemployed as white Americans with a high school diploma, and black Americans with a college education hold less wealth than white Americans who have not even completed high school. Further, because black families hold almost no wealth to begin with, black students are the most likely to borrow money to pay for college and then to borrow more. That debt, in turn, means that black students cannot start saving immediately upon graduation like their less-debt-burdened peers

It’s not a lack of homeownership . While it’s true that black Americans have the lowest homeownership rates in the nation, simply owning a home is not the same asset that it is for white Americans. Black Americans get higher mortgage rates even with equal credit worthiness, and homes in black neighborhoods do not appreciate at the same rate as those in white areas, because housing prices are still driven by the racial makeup of communities. As the Duke University economist William Darity Jr., the study’s lead author, points out, the ability to purchase a home in the first place is seldom a result of just the hard work and frugality of the buyer. “It’s actually parental and grandparental wealth that facilitates the acquisition of a home.”

It’s not because a majority of black families are led by a single mother . White single women with children hold the same amount of wealth as single black women with no children, and the typical white single parent has twice the wealth of the typical two-parent black family.

To summarize, none of the actions we are told black people must take if they want to “lift themselves” out of poverty and gain financial stability — not marrying, not getting educated, not saving more, not owning a home — can mitigate 400 years of racialized plundering . Wealth begets wealth, and white Americans have had centuries of government assistance to accumulate wealth, while the government has for the vast history of this country worked against black Americans doing the same.

SOURCE: Read the entire essay here

We live in a culture that’s becoming impatient with reading; yet reading helps us become smarter, sharper, more skilled and more open to new ideas. Books are the key to unlocking your mind’s full potential. They’re a source of unending insight. They’re a limitless well of flash-frozen wisdom from mankind’s best thinkers and doers. Each selection will bring you a different perspective and expand your worldview critical thinking skills.

To buy the books below, please use smile.amazon.com and support Destination Destiny.