We have been in the pandemic for over a year now. We don’t like being in emergency mode for that long. We are willing to change our routine for a while, do without for a while, make a special effort to be helpful for a while, but we don’t like to do it for very long. We want to get back to “normal.” But what is normal?
Normal for us seems to be deeply divided politics and a lack of caring for others. People are more interested in protecting their own rights than in caring for their neighbors. The great driving forces are money and self-indulgence.
Maybe we should ask what we want “normal” to be. We can’t do a lot to change the culture of the nation but we can affect our corner of the community. When we decide to be more faithful and less reactive, we effect the people around us ever so slightly.
Remember the mobiles that we used to hang from the ceiling? There would be several pieces perfectly balanced. If one of the pieces moved ever so slightly, the rest of the pieces would move seeking a new balance.
The people around us are affected ever so slightly or maybe quite a bit when we become more loving and more generous, less defensive and easily offended. That’s a “new normal” worth trying.
Pastor Tim
