Lenten Devotioinal March 15 "Do Unto Others"

OPENING PRAYER. . .Loving God, Creator of all that is, here I am--today in this place that you have given me, with all the senses you have given me. Help me to use them to experience you on a deeper level. May I experience you all around me, open me to know more of your ways and know that your goodness surrounds me. Thank you for this time to be with you and to just listen. Amen

LISTEN. . . "I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me. . . Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it for me." (Matthew 25:35-36)

CONSIDER. . . By word and deed Jesus challenges everything in us that keeps us from treating everyone we meet as a "near one" deserving the same decency and respect we wish to receive ourselves from those we meet. He pushes us to stretch the meaning of "love your neighbor as yourself" beyond our own kind to include whoever crosses our path at any time.

Our ego borders drop; compassionate "fellow feeling" arises; our generosity reaches out, overriding our more ordinary, less compassionate state.  Catastrophe brings out the best in people, revealing, at least for the moment, our innate capacity for God-like behavior. We think "this could be me or someone I love".  Jesus challenges us to make the "fellow feeling" that surfaces in emergencies, the heartbeat of our everyday consciousness.

SO WHAT. . ."Do unto others as you would have them do unto you".  Jesus summons us to bless, not just avoid harm.  He calls us to actively do good and to make that the center of our practice.  Jesus wants us to treat everyone in need as if God had just crossed our path.

• How do you treat those who serve you?  The wait staff at Appleby's?  The checkout person at Meijer? The person who cleans your room while you're at a hotel?
• Do you treat them as "God crossing your path"?  Or do you treat them as underlings with less than respect?
• Do you say "thank you" and "have a good day" or do you just ignore those who serve you?

Everyone we meet is in some sort of need, if only to avoid one more unpleasant or unjust encounter today.  How often do you treat others as if they are God crossing your path? 

I invite you to take some time during this Lenten season with these questions, think about God crossing your path and how you respond. How might you commit to treating others differently starting now during this Lenten season.

PRAYER. . . Loving God, show me how to do unto others as I would have them do unto me. Open my eyes to the needs around me and have me treat everyone with the same respect I want to be treated with. O Lord, help me to do good and  make it apart of my everyday life.  Amen