Da Word... 225! Lift a finger

I bet you know some people that enjoy pointing out faults or making comments.  Sometimes we call them know-it-alls.  Aren't they some of the most annoying people in the world?  Yeah, fa' sho!  What's worse is that sometimes this kind  of person is oblivious to the fact that he/she is straight pushing people away!   Oy!  Not good not good.

Jesus replied, "And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them."

- Da Christ (Luke 11:46)

Yooooo!  My man J just laid the smack down on some Pharisees and teachers of the law kid!  These kats had invited J to dine with them.  And almost immediately these kats started noticing certain traditions J was "violating."  J himself noticed their noticing and found his teaching opportunity.  What follows was a host of "Woe to you...."  He laid them bare people. 

This woe in particular jumped out at me because there are a host of peeps just like this roaming the streets and many of our relationships.  People like this LOVE to point out something, make judgements, point the finger, the whole nine.  Yet in all of their screaming, they never EVER lift a single finger to help a brutha or a sista out!  No, they only break down but never build up.

A key example are many pro-lifers.  My girlfriend and I got into a discussion one time and she was telling me about a conversation she had with another individual.  What came out of it was the realization that many pro-lifers only spit "law", but don't back up their shouting with practical and tangible programs for helping people while in the path of life or in choosing the path of life.  You can't just say pro-life and then walk away.  What kind of .... is that? A host of issues emerge and need to be addressed.

These Pharisees and teachers of the law only sought to lay down the law and keep people down.  See, they had all the power and were living large.  They could be all pious, high and mighty; meanwhile the people suffered.  This is a recipe for disaster, division, and retribution.  We need to operate differently.  Let's not be that person or so-called friend who constantly pressures another and puts him or her down.  Let's instead seek to build people up even when we have to point out a particular flaw.  Destruction is good for no one.  But genuine interest and loving action in the development of our fellow brothers and sisters is beyond golden.  The strength of your relationships, communities, and organizations will grow ever stronger for it.  Buhlee dat.

G-bless, 

  - patrick