We were in downtown for a car show and had a small group from Texas that was with us over the weekend to help us serve at the show. We try to be out on the streets to get a feel for what's going on in the city and to talk to people so this was for us another opportunity to gain better understanding of the culture we find in downtown. I highly value time like this whether I get to talk to people or not because it is great time to pray and spend with the Lord.
On that day myself and my kids were wearing our "what is your purpose?" shirts that connect to Purpose Church. We have found that questions like this are good for starting conversations similar to the one that we posed a couple of years ago, "who is Jesus to you?" They aren't meant to be offensive and both questions have netted some interesting answers from people. The Jesus question is interesting because I've found He is many things to many people: myth, good teacher, prophet, Son of God. For the purpose question, that's a harder one for people to answer because I think many people just haven't thought about it.
So there I was with my 5 boys, wearing our shirts and enjoying the sunshine and classic cars on a very pretty day in downtown while walking down the sidewalk. I remember seeing ahead of me that we were approaching some tables outside of a bar where two guys were sitting and watching the parade. I wasn't paying a lot of attention until the voice of one of the guys interrupted my thoughts.
"You got a purpose?"
I looked up to see one of the men looking at me intently.
I replied pretty quickly. "Yes, I do have a purpose here but I'm curious about what you have to say? What would you say your purpose is?"
The man's snide reply also came quickly. "Want to know what my purpose is? Here's my purpose." And he immediately raised his middle finger to me. "That's my purpose, right there."
Here time stopped.
My five boys were around me at the time and all of them were looking at the man with huge eyes. They were probably wondering two things: why did that man do that? What is Dad going to do?
My mind was frozen. What do you say in a moment like that? Why would anyone say this when my kids are right there?
I really don't know what the man was thinking. It is possible he was drunk. It is likely he's angry at the world and drowning it at the bar like many people do, attempting to kill an old pain or gloss over an unhealed wound.
I had a few options in that moment and had to make a decision immediately. Would I start a fist fight with this man who had insulted me and shamed our family? Would I get into an argument with him and try to convince him that his response was wrong? Would I passionately argue with him that his worldview was all wrong? Or, would I let it go? My kids were waiting to see which option I would take.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it in that way," I said. "Come on boys." We walked away at that moment as the man sneered at us.
"Dad...why did he say that to you?"
"I...don't know buddy. I don't know."
I think this guy knew we were members of a church. It is possible also that he knew we follow Jesus. I only say that because we've had other cases on the street where there wasn't any other explanation for people's behavior to us. To follow Jesus and state His name seems to get a rise out of people that is either peaceful or hateful. There isn't an in-between.
I'm sure many people would read this and come up with a bunch of snappy comments that could have been shot back at the man. Others would thump their Bible and say "well, why didn't you say this?" You could probably come up with many different things that could have been said in that moment or things that could have been done, and I'm sure many of your ideas would be good. But I didn't do those things. Instead, I walked away.
In that moment I believe I did what was supposed to be done, and said what was supposed to be said. Remember, my kids were around me when this happened. While they wouldn't care to admit it publicly, I know enough about them to know that they do observe me and will mimic my actions when their time comes. Kids do listen to our words, but our actions actually have a larger impact on them than words. I can say that they shouldn't yell at each other, but if I yell over things they did, they learn that behavior from me. Alternately, if they see me caring for the broken or the down and out, they probably will do the same more often than if they just heard me talk about it and not take action.
But when it comes down to it, you and I are also children and pay a lot of attention to actions as well. Are there specific behaviors that your parents did that you yourself now do? Maybe they had a volatile temper and now you find yourself with that same temper. Maybe they loved people from all backgrounds and with all skin colors and you do the same now. We mimic what we see modeled.
And of course the one that I follow modeled this behavior for me. While I wasn't there to witness Him saying these words or to see him follow them with action as he was slapped, beaten, spit upon, insulted, and abandoned, I know He modeled them perfectly.
Matthew 5:38-40 New International Version (NIV)
38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’[a] 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well.So it seems that children really do examine and follow the example of our Dads.
I don't draw attention to this to glorify myself. Some of you who know me well know that I sometimes struggle with anger. My first inclination with the man on the street was to do what Jesus did, but for a while after it happened I entertained the idea of going back and giving him a piece of my mind. Yet it's important to note that this Jesus helped me in the moment to live in the way that I'm supposed to live, and to model for my kids what has to be done in a situation like that. That's what Jesus does. He takes a broken vessel like myself and makes it new. He takes someone with rough edges, faults, and deficiencies and turns them into a new thing. It's not in a single moment that He does this either. It takes a lifetime of walking with Him, and He does that for those who follow.
Could the Gospel story have been shared with this man at that moment? Perhaps. Could a sermon have been preached in that moment? Maybe. Could I have sat down and heard his life story? It is possible. However, the purpose of that moment, I believe, was to instruct my kids.
These days it is hard in American society to behave in the manner that Jesus described, but I believe we are still called to do it. It is unfortunate that we've not degraded ourselves to the level that we argue about everything. Disagreements in political philosophies have now turned into discussions of people as "good" or "bad" human beings. Facebook posts get more and more bold, and listening to talk radio and reading blogs only emboldens us to speak in abrasive tones to others because we are right and everybody else is wrong. Yet Jesus wasn't one to argue. He had definite feelings about the way things are in this world and He shared those openly, but in moments when He was accused of wrongdoing though He was innocent, He didn't even respond to those charges when given the opportunity to argue. He saw the uselessness of that, and He was on a mission and determined to complete it.
How about you? How do Jesus's words impact you, and how will you live differently in this broken world this very week? What will your actions say about you this week? Is your allegiance to being right all of the time, or to truth? Is it with political philosophy, or with God's Kingdom?
No comments:
Post a Comment