There are
many reasons for our inability to develop meaningful relationships with others
and I wouldn’t even try to enumerate them all. I can only approach the subject
from my limited perspective. To me, the greatest thing we have going against us
in experiencing life fully and in engaging in significant relationships; in
connecting with the people around us; in missing opportunities to experience
new and unplanned things; in seeing, hearing, understanding, loving, and
appreciating the people around us is because we are busy. Like most things in
our lives, schedules are both good and bad; healthy and unhealthy; helpful and
obstructive. Many of us have a tendency to set a schedule and then put our
heads down and plod through that schedule. Fulfilling the schedule becomes the
most important thing. Instead of the people that schedule was built around. We
are so schedule oriented that we refuse to take the time and energy to just
look up and see all that is going on around us. We are so busy doing what we
are doing we fail to truly live. We tend to get busy doing things and fail to
be present with people.
When asked a
question by a religions person who was attempting to justify himself and his
attitudes about who was his neighbor, Jesus told the story we have named The
Good Samaritan. In reply Jesus said: “A
man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers.
They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half
dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the
man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the
place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he
traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He
went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the
man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day
he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he
said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may
have.’ (Luke 10:30-35 NIV)
Here is how I read the story. It wasn’t that the
Samaritan was so much better, more moral and kinder than the two who ignored the
plight of the man who was attacked and robbed. Jesus did make sure, as he
revealed his cast of characters, that we got the point that people who should
have known better and more would be expected of failed miserably to do the good
and kind thing. The priest and the Levite were the upper crust of Jewish
society. They were important, religious, socially significant people. The
Samaritan – not so much. Jews and Samaritans didn’t really care much for each
other. So why did the Samaritan stop to help? I believe he did because he
wasn’t as important as the others; he wasn’t as busy as the others; he was not
on the way to an important appointment or meeting. He took the time because he
had the time and he had the time because he had taken control of his time.
An often quoted piece of Scripture is “This is
the day which the LORD hath
made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24 (KJV) That is true
and it is a truth that we need to understand and embrace. Today is also the
only day we have and we need live it fully and use it well. It has been said
many ways by many people. We need to be fully alive in this day, the only day
we are promised. Today is a gift and that is why we call it the present. It is
a gift from God that will never return. You can’t save it for later. Use it
well; invest it well.
I am a huge fan of TED Talks. I want to encourage you to
take a look at this one on this subject. It is beautifully done. The first part is an introduction to the work
of the speaker and the last part is the real message. Both the little girl and
the old man have much to teach us. Listen and learn.
Copyright ©
2013, William T. McConnell, All Rights Reserved
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