In the novel Gilead, a grandfather writes long letters to his grandson. He is a very old pastor, and has learned stuff that it’s important to know, and important for his grandson to learn. Here’s one of the bottom line lessons of a good life:
“This is an important thing, which I have told many people, and which my father told me and which his father told him. When you encounter another person, when you have dealings with anyone at all, it is as if a question is being put to you. So you must think, what is the Lord asking of me in this moment, in this situation.”
Jesus taught some astonishing things. Like this. “Forasmuch as you did it for one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you did it for me.” Whether food for the hungry, company for the lonely, clothes and dignity for the poor, care and protection for the vulnerable – in each encounter with others, “What is the Lord asking of me, here, now?” Answer; treat this stranger the way you would treat Jesus.
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