There are a set of Laws that govern nature and even the universe itself. Gravity would be one example. If you were to go to the top of a building and step off, gravity would not care what your political affiliation is, where you came from, who your tribe is, or what you call yourself. Gravity is gravity, and it is not subject to what you think about it, and it does not choose a side. If we wish to exist successfully in the natural world, we must find out what matters to gravity and ensure that we are on its side.

       Reciprocity is another law of nature. A tree grows leaves, which then fall to the ground and nourish the soil and cause the tree to be replenished once again and enable it to grow more leaves. If this cycle is interrupted, it can have disastrous effects on not only the tree, but everything connected to it. You can see this also in our human relationships. If you do not strengthen something that strengthens you, you will grow at the detriment of what is feeding you. If you want a friendship to die, stop giving to it and see how quickly it perishes.

       Reciprocity is one facet of Justice. That is to say, Justice is also governed by laws of the universe and is indeed a law itself. So, wouldn't it be wise to seek to understand Justice the same as we have sought to understand Gravity? And like Gravity, Justice does not choose sides. When you invite Justice into a situation, it does not pick who the most correct party is and deem it the winner, although that is the way Justice has been manipulated and utilized. However, in order to gain a proper understanding of Justice, I suppose one must carefully examine the origins of where they have developed their ideas about what Justice is. And for me, the standard for Justice is God, as He is revealed in the Bible. Ironically, this is also the place where our western society has claimed to have discovered Justice. So how can we read the same Bible and come to separate conclusions? Well, entire wars have been fought over that same question.

       We live in a state where there are Christian churches on nearly every street corner, yet at the very same time, we incarcerate individuals at a rate higher than most other states. So why do we throw people away so easily? How can we be a state full of Jesus, yet be the least forgiving? Have we as individuals forgotten all the mercy God has shown to us for all the crazy things we have done? How can we go to Him and ask him for His grace and forgiveness, yet withhold it from others? How many times has He withheld punishment from us for our mistakes? I am a Christian, and have received mercy time after time, so I am qualified to speak directly to other Christians in our state who have forgotten or willfully ignored the teachings of the One they say they worship. I don't mean to be rough with you [Christians], but I do kind of mean to be rough with you, so I'm going to be rough, because I have been guilty of this too. And most of the time, the word that we are most resistive to is the one we need to hear the most.

       The Truth of the Gospel is that God is Just. In that Justice, He punished Jesus for the things we have done that deserve punishment. And because He is Just, and Justice Himself, He cannot punish two people for the same crime. So, our rightful punishment has been withheld permanently, if we accept His gift, because He already punished Jesus for it.

       So where is the disconnect between what we hear from the pulpits, and how we treat people in court who have wronged us? Now, to be sure, incarceration and punishments for crimes are one of the most important aspects of a healthy, civilized society. It is absolutely necessary to remove individuals who have broken established laws. Do not misunderstand me, I am not against the police or our system as a whole. However, we do not just lock people away who have broken our laws. We have a propensity in Oklahoma to throw people away for the rest of their lives. So, let me ask you: Did God do that to you? One might say, "But I haven't killed anyone." Yes, but the bible you claim to read everyday states that if you have broken one of God's laws, you are guilty of breaking all of them. And also, that God punished Jesus for all that stuff you did, and you are off the hook. So, I don't see how we can ask for all this mercy for ourselves and our situations and refuse to give it to others!

       How do we reconcile this? Because two things can be true at the same time. It's true that we need the ability to incarcerate individuals who have broken the law. It is also true that we are supposed to treat each other in the same manner that God has treated us, with much grace, and understanding. Well, as with most things pertaining to large groups of people, if we want the right laws to govern us, we have to put the correct people in place to legislate. In order to ensure we elect those who represent our ideals, we have to learn the correct ideals. In Oklahoma, to be elected, there are certain key words and phrases that candidates rehearse in order to secure the Evangelical vote. But because we have a poor understanding of who our God is, we keep electing people with those wrong mindsets, and we continue to reap the same results. If Pat Robertson taught our country anything, it's that it all starts with the grassroots. And all those grassroots go to church.

       The cycle that needs to be broken in Oklahoma is not the system itself; I personally believe our justice system is as close to perfect as any system in the entire world. However, it is administered by humans, who are far from perfect. No, the cycle that must be broken is the wrong understanding of where our Justice comes from. And this wrong mindset has actually been perpetuated the most by the churches. I know that's tough for my Christian brothers and sisters to hear, but the fact is we have to learn there is a difference between weakness and wickedness. There is a difference between those who we are mad at, and those we should be afraid of. By continuing to throw our brothers and sisters away, with life sentences, removing all hope from their existence, we are breaking the natural laws of reciprocity and killing the very ones who were born to be an asset to the world, not a liability. We are literally killing the ones who are meant to add back to our society. How long can a tree sustain growth and purpose if it refuses to shed its old, dying leaves, because it does not want to give up what its most familiar with? What if we incarcerated those who have broken our laws, then taught them that they mattered not only to God, but to the world and that they were absolutely necessary for our society's growth and health?

       In closing I would like to present one more natural law, that all belief systems recognize in some way, and that is confirmed by scientific minds more developed and educated than mine. That is the Law of Sowing and Reaping. If you plant one kernel of corn, not only will you get back corn, but you will get back multiplied kernels of corn. You cannot plant corn and reasonably expect to reap pumpkins, or squash, or anything besides corn. You reap what you sow, it's as simple as that. We as a society, as a state, and especially as Christians, cannot expect to keep doing the same things and somehow see a change. If we want a new and better harvest, we have to plant new seeds. My basic purpose for this direction of my life is to simply restore balance. To enter into situations where Justice has been wielded as a weapon, not as an instrument of measurement. And to sow seeds of mercy and understanding into ground that has only known punishment and wrath. To be sure, there is a time for everything, including wrath. But there is also a time for restoration. And I pray and believe that the time for Oklahoma to add restoration to its system of punishment is now.