Belated Sunday Thoughts

I've been feeling ill(er than normal) and yesterday I was pretty unfocussed, so I didn't really have a chance to sit down and write anything up. I do have a few queued things but I like to do the Sunday Thoughts as something new, so for lack of any specific ideas, I decided to go get a random bible verse.

Keep on loving each other as brothers. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.—Hebrews 13:1-2

I would be willing to bet that no matter how good or nice a person you are, and if you're a Christian no matter how much you take the idea of love for your neighbor seriously, that you probably have found yourself frequently having a hard time with this.

It's hard to be friendly towards strangers sometimes. If you're having a bad day, even people you know and care about might get the brush-off or the curt word, and certainly a stranger is likely to. The world we live in often seems to move at such a fast pace that stopping to say hi to someone and chat with them is something we don't consider. If you live or work in an area that has a fair amount of crime, maybe you just aren't sure how safe it is to stop and talk to a stranger. And of course, if you're not naturally outgoing, you're unlikely to chat someone up randomly.

But at the same time, it's good to try to remember that most of the people you run across in random situations are probably decent enough folks who might also be having a bad day and might be cheered up by someone smiling at them and saying hi. If you're standing in line at a store or waiting for a bus or train or taking a walk after dinner, why not just try that? You don't have to get into a long conversation; just a greeting and few lines of casual chit-chat could make a big difference to someone.

Smile at your server in a restaurant or the checkout clerk. Say 'Have a nice day' to the bus driver as you debark. Hold a door open for someone who has their arms full. Pick up something someone dropped and hand it back to them. All of these are little ways to acknowledge the presence of another human being, a tiny sympathetic gesture to remind them (and you) that we are all connected in some fashion. That's what "brotherhood" and "love thy neighbor" mean to me, and I think if more people made the effort to do these things, the world would be a nicer place... if only for a little while.