How We Can Become Stronger Together

I was reading a book yesterday, The President’s Devotional by Joshua Dubois and a passage jumped out at me – it was taken from the book of Matthew and it seemed strangely compelling for the days we are living through –

[Jesus said,] “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”

Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you, or thirsty, and give you something to drink? When did we see you as a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?

The King will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine you did for me.” – Matthew 25:35-40 – (NIV)

It’s easy to get caught up in the politics of the day. It’s easier still to get caught up in our own personal circumstances today. As they say – these are unprecedented times – but are they? If you are really hungry, not just that you missed lunch or dinner – but hungry in the sense that you don’t know where your next meal is coming from – are these unprecedented times? If you don’t have a change of clothes if you don’t have a home or place to rest. If you don’t know anyone as a friend to turn to for help – are these unprecedented times?

Maybe inconvenient times might better describe the times for many of us. 

Please know I am not for one moment dismissing or discounting the suffering and even loss of life for so many of our brothers and sisters. I am only trying to point out that for so many others – life is hard every day. 

 My guess is that if you are reading this – you have it better than most. I think this is the moment for those of us who enjoy such great privilege to ask ourselves if there will ever be a better time to lean in and fix what we are seeing so clearly today through our own experience and discomfort – that for some – the injustice of systemic and institutional biases, greed and our own prejudice has created a perpetual state of living in a pandemic like a certainty for many of our brothers and sisters every day – where hunger is the norm, where unemployment is your reality, where even death is likely to come too quickly because you don’t have access to medical services and the benefits of good food, shelter, and friendship. 

This is a time when leadership matters – when perpetuating the status quo simply isn’t acceptable. When returning to normal isn’t acceptable. We have to become better than before – we have to become more inclusive, more compassionate, and more responsive. We have no excuses. Consider once again the verse from Matthew, with the insert from Clayton – 

“Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you, or thirsty, and give you something to drink?

When did we see you as a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? (you saw me before, during, and after the Pandemic)

When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you? (you saw me before, during, and after the Pandemic).

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