Today’s scripture: Romans 15:1-6 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Ben Lamb):
Verse one of today’s scripture resonates quite a bit with me because of a special friend in my life. His name is Chester and he now lives with me. He hasn’t lived with me his entire life, but it’s clear that he’d never be able to make it on his own in the world.
You see, Chester lacks sufficient understanding of how to hold down a job, manage money, make purchases, and communicate well enough to be clearly understood by most people. He consistently tries his very best and seems to maintain a positive outlook on life, but it’s simply out of his capability to function at a higher level. I have been able to find pleasure in helping the endearing guy as much as I possibly can, and he certainly appears to appreciate it. Chester is my cat.
I suspect Jesus must have felt as though he was dealing with cats and dogs during some of the interactions that he had with humans while on this earth. People can act so non-human at times! Considering Jesus was the Son of God, I could imagine he must have been able to function at a level above other people, as we can function above animals. Yet, “…Christ did not please himself…”. Instead, he worked and lived for the benefit of those whom he came to serve.
I suppose if the Son of God was willing to do things such as:
• leave his heavenly home
• come to a far-from-glorious world
• get treated like dirt
• willingly die a horrid death
• go back to heaven and talk to God on behalf of us humans
• send us the Comforter (Holy Spirit)to guide us nowadays
• promise to return again for us
• give us a heap of good ideas on how to live
the least I can do is show some extra kindness to others when they need a booster shot of it.
Thought for the day: Kindness never killed anybody, and it might even save someone’s life.
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.