Seeing riots and protests occur around the United States, Les Linz became distraught.
It was unsettling to see people taking to the streets and becoming violent and destroying businesses and whatever else was in sight.
Most of them are in response to racial injustice and police brutality.
"Like everybody else, I was distraught by all of the rioting that’s going on," the Seymour man said. "I do know to discern the difference between rioters and protestors, but nonetheless, it was disturbing."
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One day, he was watching a video series by Pastor Ron Carpenter of California in which he talks about the power of God’s love to affect change in people for the better.
"Personally — and I think this is the way he was going with it, too — I’m not one of these ‘Let’s sing ‘Kumbaya” kind of guys. I don’t like that. It’s new age. I’m not for it," Linz said.
He believes in praying for the rioter instead of preying on them.
"The thing about preying on, that to me is a judgment thing, and when you’re judging them, you’re trying to put yourself higher above the other one, you’re trying to gain from them kudos for yourself," Linz said. "So my point is that when you try to judge another, you’re blocking the power of God’s love from flowing into their life, which will change their behavior."
Those who are called by God will pray for the rioter, he said.
"Not that we have to be in agreement with this rioting because we’re not," he said. "I don’t think God is, and I don’t think we are, either, but what we do need to be concerned about is loving the person, who is just as much a sinner as we were before we got saved."
That attitude will make a difference, Linz said.
"I do actions that I don’t like or others don’t like, and I’m a believer, but by loving me instead of what I do or don’t do, there’s more opportunity for me to change because God’s power … love released through his power will flow through me and it won’t be impeded because of that," he said.
Linz took all of these thoughts and put them into his sixth book, "Coping Midst Unrest: Hope from the Psalms." The 22-chapter book is only available for download to an Amazon Kindle device.
"The gist of it is this: We both want and need peace midst all the rioting that’s going on," Linz said. "The Book of Psalms gives us that peace when we apply it as we should."
While that book is based on Psalm 119, he decided to make it a three-part series with Volume II covering the first 75 psalms and Volume III covering Psalms 76 through 150 (minus Psalm 119).
The second volume is written and just needs to be formatted, and Linz hopes it’s out by mid-October. The third volume is expected in mid-February. Both will be in paperback form on amazon.com.
Through the series, Linz has a couple of hopes for readers and the country.
First and foremost, he said he has a real passion to see the country change, and secondly, the country’s not going to change until people change their mentality.
"So what I see is readers reading it and going, ‘Oh gee, I’m falling down the slippery slope by judging the person because I’m judging his actions. If I can divorce judging the actions from the person themselves, then our country will change because the power of God’s love will change the people. The power of God’s love will not be impeded by our judging the rioter for who is he rather than just his actions,’" he said. "That’s what I’m looking to get out of it."
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Les Linz’s latest book, "Coping Midst Unrest: Hope from the Psalms," is only available for download to an Amazon Kindle device at amazon.com/Coping-Midst-Unrest-Psalms-Peace-ebook/dp/B08HR7XWYX.
The second volume is expected in mid-October and the third in mid-February, both in paperback form on amazon.com.
For Linz’s other books, search for his author page on amazon.com.
The Seymour man also writes a humor column, "More or Les," that appears weekly in The Tribune.
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