What would I most like to see?
What would I most like to see in all people… from all people… given to all people…
In all things… in sports, politics, relationships, families, you-name-it…
Instead of division… instead of the strife… instead of any arrogance, self-righteousness, or denigration… I wish for the following in all:
- Love
- Joy
- Peace
- Patience
- Kindness
- Goodness
- Faithfulness
- Gentleness
- And self-control
That’s it. Easy. Well sort of.
Ponder what would be different if we never sacrificed any of the above… if we never deemed one of the above unnecessary… or if we never justified the omission of one.
I wish I would have never said, thought, or justified…
I’m so mad, I don’t need to love my neighbor well…
I’m so ticked off, I don’t need to be patient with another side…
I’m so right, I don’t need to be gentle, not to mention any thought of being kind…
I’m so something… something that dismisses the validity of the virtue.
And then we dismiss the need for goodness, faithfulness, self-control, etc.
Friends, against such things, there is no law; there are no restrictions. All of the above are always good. There is never a time synonymous with wisdom that omits any of the above.
Allow me to be more clear. I’m not always all that good at all of the above. Sometimes I’m not faithful, not gentle, and I have zero desire for kindness or self-control.
But my desire does not change what it good and true and right. What’s right remains right, whether I desire it or not. In fact, if my desire contradicts what is valid and virtuous, what is valid and virtuous is not what’s in need of change.
I offer great grace to those who struggle with one or more of the above. Allow me to humbly include myself in said mix, as I’m not sure any of us ever master the complete list this side of the human experience.
However, an inability to master does not preclude the need to work on it.
An inability to do it well consistently does not negate the need for growth.
And an inability to even desire such virtues never dismisses their validity.
Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control…
That’s it. Easy.
Well sort of.
Respectfully…
AR