Us Christians

No scripture today, just a sidewalk chalk statement that has been buzzing in my head all week. Saw it while walking between the church and La Casa de la Comunidad. Course, it's a little off to a Christian, as we believe Jesus is still very much alive, but what about what it implies? What are we doing repeatedly wrong that would compel this individual to grab a piece of chalk, find a good enough spot of sidewalk, and proclaim this criticism to us all?

My gut tells me: pain.

So, what do we do with this, us Christians?

I marvel in the idea, here, that Jesus still prevails as the positive within this statement. It's His followers that are mucking it all up. If we're supposed to be spreading light and love, where is it turning sour? Where is it turning from that which uplifts, to that which downcasts?

And then it struck me, perhaps worrying about this question is where I'm going wrong. Because my initial response is to walk away from the sidewalk and start, I don't know, apologizing, asking folks what they think of Christians, and other in-your-face, forceful measures. Perhaps it wouldn't be detrimental, but it could be quite annoying.

But didn't Jesus command us to go build relationships, real relationships with others? Isn't that what is at the heart of all of Paul's letters? Now, I don't know about you, but real relationships for me don't occur when someone comes up to me and says, "hey, I've got something you need, you really ought to listen to me, you really need what I've got here." That sounds like a business convention, and who finds lasting friendships there?

Real relationships take time, take trust, and take commitment. Real relationships occur over a barbecue, over hitting a pinata together with kids in the neighborhood, over reaching out to someone when they've suffered a loss and letting them reach out to you when you have, over listening, listening, and listening. Maybe we needn't worry about if we convert people to Christianity, because isn't that an agreement between them and Jesus anyway?

A light bulb doesn't have to explain to me that when it's on, things get brighter and warmer. I just see it. I just feel it. I don't need commercials explaining that light bulbs are a helpful and good idea on many levels. So maybe I ought to just turn my light on, let the brightness and warmth out, and let it be seen and felt.

Maybe I ought to stop typing now and just listen, look, and love.

Matthew