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Cal's Pastoral Epistles
"What Do You Expect?"
September 9, 2009
The farther I walked the more I began to feel my heart beat louder and
faster. I looked from side to side with every hastening step. Our van had to
be just up ahead. I was disoriented and every street corner looked alike. I
remembered seeing a fruit and vegetable stand on my way in and there it
was. The van was nowhere in sight.
I must have walked a mile and finally I came to an intersection where
there were no more parked cars. With my anxiety level rising off the chart I
turned around and began retracing my steps. I checked the street sign to
confirm that I was in the right place. At that point I came to the inevitable
conclusion that my car had been stolen. This was New York City after all.
As I slowly made my way back to my daughter's school, I began
weighing my options. Having the car stolen was my greatest fear as I drove
into the city. New York is known for that. In the next few minutes I went
from regret to anger to sorrow. I walked up the four floors to my
daughter's classroom and when she came out I said, "I can't find the car. I
think it has been stolen."
She asked me if I was sure. Then she said, "You went out to the corner
and turned left, right?" Talk about feeling like a fool. "Left?" I said. " I went
right." As I went back down to the corner and turned left I saw the van on
the other side of the street. I can't tell you how happy I was.
As I drove away I realized just how much expectations influence our
perception of reality. From the moment I parked outside of Becky's
apartment in Brooklyn to the second I got in the car to drive away, I had
been certain that someone was going to steal my car. When I turned the
corner and went right, my expectations had been met.
It dawned on me that this happens every day when we let our
preconceived notions about race, gender, political affiliation, religion and
culture dictate the way we view the people we encounter. We see it in its
extreme when we watch the commentators on MSNBC or Fox News.
I love the fact that Jesus often challenged these stereotypes and made his
disciples think. The woman at the well, the story of the good Samaritan, the
call of Matthew the tax collector provide examples of the way Jesus
challenged us to put aside our bias and to meet the people as God sees them.
How does God see the world? In John 3:16 we read "For God so loved the
world that he gave his only son..." God sees the world through the eyes of
love. Imagine how differently we would see the world if we followed his
example. Better yet, imagine how the world would view us if all of us as
people of faith could live that way. I believe that everything that we thought
was lost, would soon be found.
God Bless. See you in Church. Cal.
September 9, 2009
The farther I walked the more I began to feel my heart beat louder and
faster. I looked from side to side with every hastening step. Our van had to
be just up ahead. I was disoriented and every street corner looked alike. I
remembered seeing a fruit and vegetable stand on my way in and there it
was. The van was nowhere in sight.
I must have walked a mile and finally I came to an intersection where
there were no more parked cars. With my anxiety level rising off the chart I
turned around and began retracing my steps. I checked the street sign to
confirm that I was in the right place. At that point I came to the inevitable
conclusion that my car had been stolen. This was New York City after all.
As I slowly made my way back to my daughter's school, I began
weighing my options. Having the car stolen was my greatest fear as I drove
into the city. New York is known for that. In the next few minutes I went
from regret to anger to sorrow. I walked up the four floors to my
daughter's classroom and when she came out I said, "I can't find the car. I
think it has been stolen."
She asked me if I was sure. Then she said, "You went out to the corner
and turned left, right?" Talk about feeling like a fool. "Left?" I said. " I went
right." As I went back down to the corner and turned left I saw the van on
the other side of the street. I can't tell you how happy I was.
As I drove away I realized just how much expectations influence our
perception of reality. From the moment I parked outside of Becky's
apartment in Brooklyn to the second I got in the car to drive away, I had
been certain that someone was going to steal my car. When I turned the
corner and went right, my expectations had been met.
It dawned on me that this happens every day when we let our
preconceived notions about race, gender, political affiliation, religion and
culture dictate the way we view the people we encounter. We see it in its
extreme when we watch the commentators on MSNBC or Fox News.
I love the fact that Jesus often challenged these stereotypes and made his
disciples think. The woman at the well, the story of the good Samaritan, the
call of Matthew the tax collector provide examples of the way Jesus
challenged us to put aside our bias and to meet the people as God sees them.
How does God see the world? In John 3:16 we read "For God so loved the
world that he gave his only son..." God sees the world through the eyes of
love. Imagine how differently we would see the world if we followed his
example. Better yet, imagine how the world would view us if all of us as
people of faith could live that way. I believe that everything that we thought
was lost, would soon be found.
God Bless. See you in Church. Cal.
Pastor Cal Lord writes these weekly epistles to
help us see God in every day things.
help us see God in every day things.
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