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The Prophesy of the Tik Toc Zoomers

"Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who lead my people astray, who cry 'Peace' when they have something to eat, but declare war against those who put nothing into their mouths. Therefore it shall be night to you, without vision, and darkness to you, without revelation. The sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be black over them; the seers shall be disgraced, and the diviners put to shame; they shall all cover their lips, for there is no answer from God. But as for me, I am filled with power, with the spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin." (Micah 3:5-8)
I woke this morning to news that young people all over the country had essentially sabotaged a particularly controversial campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I was dismayed by the imagery of white supremacists gathering in Tulsa to celebrate "Keeping America Great" in the mist of the ongoing protests and demonstrations taking place throughout our country calling for transformation and repentance.

I cannot help but think of the passage from Micah 3 where the prophet speaks against the powers that be and the false prophets that lead them, referring to them as those "who cry 'Peace' when they have something to eat, but declare war against those who put nothing into their mouths." While people are literally in the streets crying out for justice, there is a whole contingency of people saying "Peace." There are still millions of people who, thinking America is great the way it is, would say that protesters should just go back home and stop making a fuss. They don't see that while they think things are basically going just fine--there's no such thing as systemic racism, the economy is fine, etc.--their rallies are actually a way of waging war on "those who put nothing into their mouths." There is no "peace" and America is not "great" right now. And the suffering of the world still faces the ignorance of the powerful.

Going to sleep pretty dismayed by this image and the division that it represents, I was pretty inspired to wake to the news that the rally in Tulsa had actually been sparsely attended and, while Trump and his prophets tried to blame it on people blocking gates, it was because young people all over the country had sabotaged the event by reserving thousands of tickets, leaving an enormous swath of empty seats in an arena that was supposed to be packed to the brim (in fact Trump had prepared a second stage that he didn't end up needing). According to Steve Schmidt, in a Tweet, "The teens of America have struck a savage blow against @realDonaldTrump. All across America teens ordered tickets to this event. The fools on the campaign bragged about a million tickets. lol."
My first reaction was, "why didn't I think of this!?" And, as a youth pastor, "what a great youth mission opportunity this would have been!" But I think that's part of the point here. I didn't think of it. We didn't think of it. They did--these prophets among us. All I can think of as I reflect on this is Micah's prophesy.
"Therefore it shall be night to you, without vision, and darkness to you, without revelation. The sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be black over them; the seers shall be disgraced, and the diviners put to shame; they shall all cover their lips, for there is no answer from God."
Under the noses of the thousands of MAGA hats and Trump campaigners in Tulsa, young people all over the country, without any fanfare of their own, had quietly put them to shame. God, as it turns out, is not with those who cry "Peace," but with those who, "with justice and might," declare the transgressions of the comfortable and put their blindness on display.

It may be a bit dramatic and even superficial to compare this Tik Tok sabotage with Micah 3... I'll admit, it might be a stretch... but I am inspired by the passion of these young people and their ingenious--though unconventional--political activism, their courage to stand up to power even while they themselves are marginalized by virtue of their age. "God has chosen what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen what is weak in the world to shame the strong" (1 Cor 1:27). I am reminded that God is active in the world even while I am tempted toward cynicism, even while I am too defeated to think of an idea like this myself, there are still prophets among us and they are not who we might expect them to be.
"But as for me, I am filled with power, with the spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin."
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