Friends and Enemies.

Published by Aundre | Filed under Uncategorized

When I was younger, about middle school age, our youth group took an international missions trip to Honduras. Being younger, I didnt really see the importance of the experience so I never really showed interest and the trip itself was quite expensive.

Anyway, when the people who went to Honduras returned they brought back many stories, one of which I want to highlight. Travis Deans, aka my father, told me about this guy he met, the name of which slips me or Travis just never told me. Either way, Travis and said Honduran teen bonded over basketball. Travis described it as: even though they didnt speak, since Travis only spoke English and the Honduran teen spoke little to no English, everyday they would shoot hoops at the basketball hoop near the place they were staying.

Although it seems trite, this is exactly how God intended for us to act as humans, all part of one fabric, on large quilt known as God’s masterpiece.

I know this is kind of cliche but with this blog I hope to encourage you, the person  who is currently reading this, to make a shot into the dark. All of us not just Christians have something, possibly more than one thing that makes us just cringe, something we think is gross, unclean and for this reason we treat the partakers in whatever your “it ” is as enemies.

We see them doing whatever it is or not doing and our theoretical fists come out swinging. We ignore, we snicker, we gossip, we bully, heck we barely treat them as humans.

Now as a disclaimer, I am by no means saying all of a sudden drop your morals, hygienic code or life beliefs, because somethings that you inherently feel arent right are just that, but we need to understand that when we treat the people who are have made that mistake or are a part of said thing as such we create a rift in our human story.

Example, I know a person who feels that people of the opposite sex are untrustworthy for some reason that is unknown to me. All that I am aware of is that this person was hurt severely by a member of the opposite sex and for that reason they hold members of the other gender at more than arms length. She actually is a lesbian, mostly I believe because she hates men. And to be honest that breaks my heart, and it breaks God’s heart to see that bond between us be severed.

The Bible records a beautiful prayer from Jesus about us to God. In John 17, Jesus actually says “²⁰“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, ²¹that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.” God, the creator of the Universe and Jesus, savior king, united to give us a path out of our darkness. And Jesus’ prayer is that we unite in order to be a light to others.

Instead we treat others as enemies, like the filth of the earth.

Friends, we are supposed to fit like puzzle pieces, thread together like a patchwork quilt, blend as one like oil pastels. Instead what are we? Fragmented pieces of paper floating farther apart from one another each and every day because we are judgmental, self righteous and phobic.

In case you or I forgot, we need each other. I used the analogy of a puzzle earlier and I think it is the best metaphor to illustrate what Im trying to say. Without pieces of the puzzle how much of the great picture of life are we missing?

People keep asking where is the love, and to be honest, its here, its just busy being hindered by pretense and self righteousness.

To close I think Pastor David said it the best, the only difference between the words unite and untie is one letter, I. Will I, Will you, Will we all continue to allow that singular letter that represents all of our selfishness destroy the fabric of how life is supposed to be lived?

[postscript]

Upon leaving Honduras, Travis said that he received a letter from the Honduran teen in Spanish just saying thank you for hanging out with him and playing basketball.