Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 118; Malachi 2:1-16; Luke 24:36-53; Romans 12:14-21; Psalm 126
Today’s passage from Romans is a wonderful primer on how to get along with others. I particularly resonated with Paul’s advice in Romans 12:17-18. Eugene Peterson, in his translation titled The Message, translates these words as follows: “Don’t hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody.” As I read these words, I was reminded of an irony in my life. Let me tell you what that is. My first job out of college was teaching English and social studies in a juvenile detention center. In my position, every day I encountered individuals who had committed a wide variety of offenses: from assaults to sex offenses to murder. You name the offense, I saw it! For some reason, being in a place where everyone knew everyone else was wrestling with a flaw of some sort made it relatively easy to look beyond those faults and find the “beauty in everyone.” Actually, the setting required it! In working in churches off and on for the past 24 years (my first church job was as janitor for my home church when I was 16), I’ve Paul’s words more challenging to live out in this environment. Maybe it’s because we feel as if church is a place where we can’t bring our flaws. Our constant efforts to project perfection (or at least “I’ve got it all together”-ness) perhaps leaves us worn out and cranky. Whatever the case, we often end up taking it out on others around us. What has been your experience in living out Paul’s words? Are there times and places in your life when it’s been easier to follow them than at other times and places? Today, may God’s Spirit encourage and empower us to live into them at all times. In all places. Til next time…
Today’s passage from Romans is a wonderful primer on how to get along with others. I particularly resonated with Paul’s advice in Romans 12:17-18. Eugene Peterson, in his translation titled The Message, translates these words as follows: “Don’t hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody.” As I read these words, I was reminded of an irony in my life. Let me tell you what that is. My first job out of college was teaching English and social studies in a juvenile detention center. In my position, every day I encountered individuals who had committed a wide variety of offenses: from assaults to sex offenses to murder. You name the offense, I saw it! For some reason, being in a place where everyone knew everyone else was wrestling with a flaw of some sort made it relatively easy to look beyond those faults and find the “beauty in everyone.” Actually, the setting required it! In working in churches off and on for the past 24 years (my first church job was as janitor for my home church when I was 16), I’ve Paul’s words more challenging to live out in this environment. Maybe it’s because we feel as if church is a place where we can’t bring our flaws. Our constant efforts to project perfection (or at least “I’ve got it all together”-ness) perhaps leaves us worn out and cranky. Whatever the case, we often end up taking it out on others around us. What has been your experience in living out Paul’s words? Are there times and places in your life when it’s been easier to follow them than at other times and places? Today, may God’s Spirit encourage and empower us to live into them at all times. In all places. Til next time…
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