WALK slow. GO easy. And LOVE well
Let me know you, oh Lord, who knows me; let me know you as I
am known. Enter into my soul and fitted for yourself so that you may have it
and hold it without spot or wrinkle. This is my hope. Amen.
St. Augustine in Confessions
Matthew 5:13-16
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Mark 12:30-31
There is a sign I have been seeing increasingly around our
city that I find troubling. I am not troubled by what the sign says, but I am
troubled by the circumstances that make this sign necessary. Perhaps you've
seen the sign perhaps you have the same reaction I do. The sign on referring to
is being posted in grocery stores, local take outs, restaurants, corner stores,
and hospitals that reads:
The very need to post such a sign saddens me, and also says something
about our culture. Please note I said OUR culture. I am part of that culture,
you are too. I am not suggesting that
the sign is directed to everyone reading this. But, whats the old saying “if
the shoe fits then wear it”? Own the
responsibility. I am, I get impatient in the check out line, the way I speak has
at times been … shall we say not seasoned with love.
An analysis of our culture is not the intent here, but I am interested in
reflecting how we as followers of Jesus ought to carry ourselves. I have
witnessed this angry trend, haven’t you? Somehow we have come to a place where
the norm seems to be just keep arguing, keep raising your voice louder and louder,
throw a few disparaging remarks at the person and you will get what you are
after.
Monday, our Bible verse opened with “Be easy on people; you’ll find life a lot easier.” There is great wisdom in those words. A school sign
I drive by reads “In a world
where you can be anything, BE KIND.” More good advice. Jesus says the commands of God can be boiled
down to Love God, Love neighbor. Jesus also invites us to be salt and light in
the world, and the reason for such an invitation …. to GLORIFY our Father in
Heaven. In other words, the followers of Jesus can lead by example, by their
actions, by the way they treat people around them. In doing this we may just bring about change in culture the way salt seasons the food we eat.
My own self examination on
this reveals that when I am harsh, or unkind to staff at a store etc., it rarely has to do with the person in front of me. It is always about something in me, I
have crammed so much in my day that I am rushing, the anxiousness and pressure
that brings makes me selfish, and grumpy. Do you understand this? Does it
happen to you?
Maybe for starters in such
moments we should take a deep breath and, as Darren Mulligan of We Are
Messengers encourages us in one song, “try very hard to … “Walk slow. Go easy.
And love well.”
What does that sentence mean to
you? “Walk slow. Go easy. And love well.”
Today let us prayerfully contemplate those seven words and what they could mean for your life and who finds a welcome at your table.
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