Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 12; Leviticus 19:26-37; Matthew 6:19-24; 1 Corinthians 12:27-31; Psalm 15
Over the years I have developed a tool that helps me better understand a person’s true character. The tool works something like this. When I’m spending time with a person, I watch how they treat those whom they interact with. When I say “those whom they interact with”, I don’t mean I watch their interactions with those whom our society would call “important people”. No, I especially watch their interactions with those whom society would deem “unimportant”: people like busboys at a restaurant, clerks at a retail store, people who hold a door open for them as they walk into a building, etc. And why do I feel watching how the person I’m with treats such individuals can provide insights into that individual’s character? I think that because people in the roles I mentioned are often treated by society as someone who simply provides a service for our convenience. Most people don’t even “see” such persons – let alone acknowledge their humanity. I see them differently than most, however. I see them as expressions of the value lifted up in today’s passage from 1 Corinthians. That passage reminds us that each of our lives represents one piece of the larger body, and each piece is essential to the well being of the whole. Now Paul uses the metaphor of the body to talk specifically about those within the faith community. In my spiritual life, I broaden Paul’s metaphor to include the whole of God’s world. Today while you are out, pay attention to how you interact with others. Do you treat ALL of those with whom you interact as if they were vital elements of a larger body, or have you adopted society’s values and treat people according to their perceived status? Don’t answer that question with words; answer that question with your actions. Til next time…
Over the years I have developed a tool that helps me better understand a person’s true character. The tool works something like this. When I’m spending time with a person, I watch how they treat those whom they interact with. When I say “those whom they interact with”, I don’t mean I watch their interactions with those whom our society would call “important people”. No, I especially watch their interactions with those whom society would deem “unimportant”: people like busboys at a restaurant, clerks at a retail store, people who hold a door open for them as they walk into a building, etc. And why do I feel watching how the person I’m with treats such individuals can provide insights into that individual’s character? I think that because people in the roles I mentioned are often treated by society as someone who simply provides a service for our convenience. Most people don’t even “see” such persons – let alone acknowledge their humanity. I see them differently than most, however. I see them as expressions of the value lifted up in today’s passage from 1 Corinthians. That passage reminds us that each of our lives represents one piece of the larger body, and each piece is essential to the well being of the whole. Now Paul uses the metaphor of the body to talk specifically about those within the faith community. In my spiritual life, I broaden Paul’s metaphor to include the whole of God’s world. Today while you are out, pay attention to how you interact with others. Do you treat ALL of those with whom you interact as if they were vital elements of a larger body, or have you adopted society’s values and treat people according to their perceived status? Don’t answer that question with words; answer that question with your actions. Til next time…
