Be Nice to Your Brother

 “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind….And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matthew 22:37 &38 NIV).

When my grandsons were younger, they loved to torment one another: A poke here, a kick there, and a headlock for good measure. I had a mantra for them, “Be nice to your brother.” That helped them remember to be kind…sometimes.  Now they’ve outgrown that stage, but they still occasionally give one another an “affectionate” poke or kick.

Most adults don’t torment one another with kicks, pokes, or headlocks. We use something more harmful: words. An unkind word here, a sarcastic tone there, and some backbiting gossip for good measure. Sometimes we just aren’t nice to one another.

I’m sure every one of us is guilty of those verbal pokes and kicks to our neighbors and to our spiritual brothers and sisters in Christ. Fortunately for us, Jesus will forgive us. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”  With His assistance we can follow the second greatest commandment and love our neighbors.

Lord, forgive my unkind pokes, both the words and the thoughts, and teach me how to be nice to my brothers.

Take the Next Step

“We lose interest and give up when we have no vision, no encouragement, and no improvement, but only experience our everyday life with its trivial tasks. The thing that really testifies for God in the long run is steady perseverance…Ask God to keep the eyes of your spirit open to the risen Christ and take the next step.” Oswald Chambers

Millions of Raindrops

I’ve always wanted to do big things—you know, travel to a foreign country and help needy people. Feed and clothe those who are hungry and lack adequate clothing. I want to change the world.

But I am just an ordinary person. I don’t have tons of money, I don’t own a non-profit, I’m retired and not as energetic as I used to be. I cook, I eat, I clean up the mess. I live an ordinary life.

I still long for the large gesture, but I’m learning that ordinary is okay. I’m learning that a small help can be enough, just like the boy throwing starfish back into the sea. I’m learning that most of us are ordinary, that most of us can do small things, and the accumulated small things can make a big difference in this world.

Jesus did some pretty big things. He healed people, He raised them from the dead, He stilled a furious storm, He walked on water, He died and came to life again. I’d call all of those world-changing.

In many ways, however, he was ordinary. He worked as a carpenter, He walked around the country, getting His feet dirty. Sometimes He had to settle disagreements among His disciples who argued over who would sit at His right side.

He ate like us, He talked with His friends, He slept, He cried in grief. Even when He was suffering and dying on the cross, He made sure John would take care of His mother. In many ways, He was ordinary, like us.

Today as I walked the nature trails near my house, (one of my ordinary activities) I had to stop and turn around. Even days after our recent heavy rains, the stream remained swollen so it ran over the cement bridge. Just a few days earlier, the stream had buried the bridge under water and ran at least a dozen feet out of its banks. It was impassable. My ordinary little stream had become strong and powerful.

When I thought about it, however, I realized the out-of-its-banks stream was simply filled with millions of tiny drops of water. Together, those drops had power. Individually, they seem insignificant. If we contribute a few drops, can’t we make a difference, together?

My fitness watch says it takes me 2,500 steps to walk a mile. A marathon is 26.2 miles, or 65,500 steps. I’m not too eager to walk a marathon in a day. But if I walk a few miles a day, I can still walk a marathon. It just takes a little longer. Our little steps can make a difference.

A few of the small ways I feel compelled to help others include donating money to groups that help the poor and those who suffer tragedies, babysitting at my church so the parents can attend their small groups, making hats for the homeless, and writing and sharing devotions and scripture that I hope and pray will encourage others.

My question/challenge for you is this: how can you contribute a few small drops for others? If we all help, we can create a raging river.

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew 25:37-40

Listening to the Stream

At first glance, the stream appears motionless, its shallow green waters merely reflecting the overarching canopy of green. But here by the bridge, rocks litter the stream’s bed, and its water comes to life. Its meandering impeded, the stream ripples, bubbles, and rushes. The currents ripple and swirl around the rocks and fall over submerged stone, plunging to a lower level, leaving bubbling foam at the base of the mini-waterfall. I sit by the side of the stream listening to its gurgling, allowing the water’s chaos to soothe my soul.

God’s spirit flows through my life like a stream. At times it moves so quietly I scarcely notice its motion. But once life’s difficulties obstruct my way, I take more quiet time to listen carefully for God’s spirit rushing through my life. When I sit quietly, watching and listening, I have eyes to see and ears to hear His spirit moving in my life.

Lord, help me to be inwardly still during both crises and calm times, that I may better acknowledge you and your work in my life.

Psalm 46:10a “Be still and know that I am God.”