A Peculiar Sort

I have been fortunate most of my life not to be aware of many of my enemies.  I say "not aware", because I am quite sure that there are plenty of people who don't like me - I just don't know who they are.  Similarly, there are people that I don't care to spend time with.  I wouldn't really call them enemies, more just annoying.   Said another way, they don't do anything for me.  As I have gotten older, I find it easier to be "nice" to them when I am around them.  I can pretend that they aren't annoying for a bit.  I believe pretending to be nice is better than being mean.  But then, when I am outside their presence, they are the butt of my conversation with those inside my comfy little circle.  My true feelings show.

In Matthew 5, Jesus says: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor[i] and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?   

Loving those that love me is nothing special.  Anyone can do that.  The Greek word "periousios" is best translated as "peculiar", and that is one of the ways the Bible describes how Christians should be.  Someone looking in from the outside might think, "Why is he behaving that way?  He seems to be treating others so kindly even in the face of ridicule.  He seems so peculiar."  I want to try to be more peculiar today.

My thoughts today are inspired by Chapter 12 of "The Cost of Discipleship".

Sibling Revelry

One of the classic books on Christian discipleship is Dietrich Bonhoeffer's "The Cost of Discipleship".  I read it several years ago, but I am reading it again now.  Chapter 9 is entitled "Brother".  I have two brothers, and many of us have at least one, so it should be relevant to a lot of us, right?  But I was a little taken aback when the first verse of the bible reference was talking about how we shouldn't murder people.   When I was younger, I may have thought I was mad enough to murder one of my brothers, but never seriously considered it.  In Matthew 5:21, Jesus says, "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgement."   Of all of the laws and social issues that are debated every day online and around the water cooler (do those even still exist?), I believe "not murdering" is considered by all, except the deranged, to be a good idea.  But verse 22 continues, "But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgement."  So Jesus is taking the Old Testament commandment, "do not murder", and extending it to "do not be angry".   While we may agree that anger is also something to avoid, unlike murder, most of us feel some level of anger almost every day.  OK, that gives me something to work on that I should be able to manage.  Try not to be angry with my two brothers.  I talk to them and see them regularly, but certainly not every day, so I should be able to handle that most days.  But it is somewhat unsettling that Jesus is not just talking about not being angry with our siblings.  We are all God's children, and we are invited to be the adopted brothers and sisters of Jesus.  If we choose that, we must also choose to try to follow him and his teaching.  Think of who makes you angry.  Remember that they are a child of God.  Try not to be angry with them today.  I will try, too.

Tom Cruising

The bad news: Caroline and I are not great about planning vacations. The good news: We have amazing friends that are - and sometimes they include us. A couple of months ago, one of my best friends from college and his wife invited us to join them on a Caribbean cruise. We thought about it for about 13 seconds and then accepted.  We embark on Friday and return the following Saturday.  We have had a busy start to the year with the sale of our house in Braselton, so we are looking forward to some down time.  More than that, we are looking forward to spending extended time with our friends reminiscing about old times and talking about what's in store for us next. I look forward to giving you an update when I return. I encourage you to prioritize time with the most important people in your life, and I commit to doing a better job of initiating opportunities to do that with our friends in the future.