Change
Starts with You
But
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. – Galatians 5:22-23
What does
kindness mean to you? If you are kind to someone else, do you expect accolades
or at least reciprocation? Do you tell everyone about your wonderful deed?
What about
patience? Are you patient with others as God is patient with you? Or do you get
in a hurry, yelling and gesturing at other drivers or bad-mouthing the fast-food
worker for not performing to your expectations?
Are you
faithful to God ALL the time or only when it’s convenient? Do you show up for
church, volunteer, tithe and study the Bible only when it fits into your busy
schedule? Do you explain away your good intentions even as another week goes
by?
We’ve all
been talking about guns and gun violence. We’ve pointed fingers and blamed
mental illness, all the while clinging to our own rights and views. We’ve told
others they need to change but we refuse to open our minds to our responsibilities.
This is not
where I lecture you on guns or the poor or even on going to church. I support
the Second Amendment, giving to the poor and attending church each week. But
mostly I advocate for change in how we treat other people each and every day.
That’s where change starts. Not in Washington or in other political groups. It
doesn’t even start in the “church” as we call it. Change begins with you and me
and when we change, when we become more like Jesus, the world around us begins
to change too.
Yesterday we
studied the Fruit of the Spirit, found in Galatians. We didn’t focus on the
things we shouldn’t do. Instead, we focused on what we as individuals could do
to bring change within our own hearts so that it ripples out into the world.
Growing
fruit seems so easy. Start with love and everything else flows from that. But
we have trouble loving people who aren’t like us. We don’t particularly want to
accept people who don’t look like us or talk like us or, let’s get real here,
are born into our country to parents who have been here a while.
What would
happen if we stopped judging people? What would change if we intentionally
loved those around us, including those we don’t agree with and those who maybe
haven’t met our expectations of what living a good life really looks like?
Jesus said
we are the light of the world. Each day we have a choice. We can love and, in
so doing, be living examples of the Fruit of the Spirit. Or we can remain
self-focused, determined to keep our own best interests ahead of what God
actually tells us to do.
Do you want
to change what’s wrong with the world? Look in the mirror. That’s the person
you start with.
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