What do we have to give?
The news headlines and images may show us places and spaces that feel very much out of our control. How can we possibly impact the political culture in D.C. from our couches around the country (or the world depending on where you’re reading this)? At this point, we can’t control what will happen in the capital city, but we can control what happens in our homes and our responses to our neighbors.
If we go back to the basics, Jesus said the two most important things for us to do while walking this earth are to love God and our neighbors. Eugene Peterson paraphrased Jesus’s response this way, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.’ This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it. ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’ These two commands are pegs; everything in God’s Law and the Prophets hangs from them.'” If this is our aim, this is how we can respond.
1. A healthy you.
This week you won’t be able to change what is happening in your news feed, but you can offer your home and your block, school, workplace, church, and grocery store a healthy, welcoming person. If we are to love others as we love ourselves we can start here by giving our own bodies, minds, and spirits what we need. A well-rested you is going to offer others more patience than a sleep-deprived version. Exercise, eat well, limit your media intake. Do whatever needs to be done to love yourself well so you can love others well.
2. Listening ears
There seem to be a lot of hot-takes and not many listeners for them. In the supply and demand economy, our supply is outweighing the demand right now. We can balance those scales a bit with more listening. Listen with your whole body. Don’t feel a need to respond or form an opinion. Listen to the Holy Spirit and ask for direction in how best to respond. Listen to sources and voices other than where your default takes you. Add some intentionality to who you are listening to and how. The only action here is to listen to gain understanding. No other response is needed. Maybe after listening you will feel compelled to act, but let me free you from that pressure for this week. It’s okay to actively listen and sit with what you hear.
3. Prayer
Prayer is a mystery to me. I’m not sure how it works, but I know it is a tool that God gives us to come to him and get in better rhythm with his heartbeat. Pray for whatever you are concerned about and it will, in turn, help make a healthier you and give you listening ears. Pray as you watch the news. Pray as you walk around the block. Pray before, during, and after that difficult phone call with a family member you don’t agree with, but want to understand better.
All three of these offerings strengthen each other. The more we pray, the healthier we’ll be, and the better we’ll be able to listen.
We can’t change the world, but we can change our corner of it. If you’d like practical ways to move forward with loving your neighbor, if you want to be intentional, but don’t know where to start, I wrote a book titled Loving My Actual Neighbor that covers that. I would love to join you in the conversation.
I originally sent this out to my weekly-ish newsletter subscribers. A number of them asked for me to put it in a place where they could share, so I am posting here. If you would like to receive this regular email, you can sign up here. You can expect three tips every week that will help you love God and neighbor more. |
