By Rev. Tyger L. Penson
Recently I went for my yearly check-up with my doctor. He asked, “How are you doing, emotionally?” I replied, “Fine, why do you ask?” Doctor: “I am seeing so many people who are suffering from the effects of fear, hate, uncertainty, disunity. They display depression, even illness.” He went on to talk about the dangers of sitting in front of the TV all day long, witnessing and hearing the rhetoric and dangers and bad news that rattles the tube hour after hour.
And then I noticed the plaque on his wall with these words of the Dalai Lama:
WE CANNOT ACHIEVE WORLD PEACE WITHOUT FIRST ACHIEVING PEACE
WITHIN OURSELVES…INNER PEACE.
IN AN ATMOSPHERE OF HATRED, ANGER, COMPETITION AND VIOLENCE,
NO LASTING PEACE CAN BE ACHIEVED.
THESE NEGATIVE AND DESTRUCTIVE FORCES
MUST BE OVERCOME BY COMPASSION LOVE AND ALTRUISM,
WHICH ARE THE ESSENTIAL TEACHING OF THE BUDDHA
Through his actions and wall messages, my doctor was doing what he could to show compassion and to help those who were suffering. What a blessing he is!
In Colossians, we hear these words. “As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful.” (Colossians 3:12-15, NRSV)
That is helpful and good advice. When we clothe ourselves in those virtues, we display God’s desire for each of us to be his helpers and show the face of God to others. It is what the world really, really needs now!
Prayer: Make me an instrument of your peace, dear God. Help me to touch the lives of those who are depressed, destructive or negative in their attitudes and actions. Let me be your hands and voice to bring them hope through the light of your love. Amen.