A Thing I Know

I’ve been frustrated recently. Angry at times.

In our effort to make sense of a messy world, attempt to recover a failing economy, protect the lives of the vulnerable, there’s shouting, chaos, misinformation, and even hate.

It’s heavy to see, to hear, to experience.

I’ve felt lonely in a new way – divided by sentiments espoused by family, friends.

There’s division among party lines. Division among faith and what it promises. Division on what should rise to the surface when the dust and pain settle.

James said something today that I love, “Deal with Christ on the basis of who He says He is.” Also, I might add…deal with Christ on the basis of who he was, on how he lived on earth.

I don’t know how to save our fragile economy while protecting the precious lives of all.

There are people much smarter than I working tirelessly to figure this out.

But I am confident in one thing: I know how Jesus lived on earth. And many know, regardless of their religious affiliation.

I know that he served the vulnerable. I know that he stood in the seams of society – rejecting the boundaries of class, race, or education. I know that he gave, and gave, and gave…until he gave his last breath for the lives of those around him.

I know that he loved the lives around him in a practical and ultimate way.

I am also fairly certain that if Jesus were here today, He would not be a republican. He would not a democrat either. He told us to “render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s.”

I think that he would rise above the tribalism, the bickering, the anger, the shouting, and help us recall the point.

The point isn’t Caesar… yes, okay that matters, but that’s not the end. The end is God – and God’s kingdom.

And we aren’t left to speculate what God’s kingdom on earth looks like. Christ showed us.

We need only to look to His life.

It is: living in the seams and loving others more than ourselves – treasuring the hearts and lives of one another above all. It is simply loving God and loving others across all our artificial divides.

It is not: having the correct political views or the perfect beliefs (sup, Pharisees). It’s not belonging to the “right” affiliation, denomination, or division.

The identity Christ gave us is in a universal Kingdom – one that transcends country, political affiliation, pain, and pandemic. One church, one Shepard.

So, Lord, help us to love. To forgive the arrogance and anger that make us bitter towards people we care for. To melt our hearts to hear and see the needs around us.

Help us to remember your life, and the people we were created to be. Forgive us when we forget.