Responsibility

Thank you for your moving post about the Seattle Church, perhaps you should become a pastor yourself? You would write and deliver thought provoking and uplifting sermons. And who could deny that you would be doing the will of God? Do you feel the calling?

A few years back when I was considering what path to follow as a Christian I thought of doing aid work in Africa. Two things stopped me, the first was that I have a commitment to my daughter, I feel that her life would be diminished by my not being in it for large chunks of time. The second was a young lady I know whose parents run a Church in Leeds in the UK. She absolutely loathes Christianity because she says her parents would "help a tramp but neglect the kids". She thinks that the Church is the spawn of the devil! She's not too fond of her parents either. I want to avoid my daughter thinking such things.

These reasons are quite possibly excuses of course. So for selfish me, I'll put far less than two mites on the plate.

Where are you and I, in the top 10%? The top 5% in the global education and wealth stakes? As a result of our position I believe that we have a responsibility to the less blessed.

"Regard your neighbor's gain as your own gain, and your neighbor's loss as your own loss." T'ai Shang Kan Ying P'ien

Perhaps our job is not to throw up our hands and give our lives over to faith but to take responsibility for it? To affirm that individual and social problems can be resolved by means of human reason, intelligent effort, critical thinking joined with compassion and a spirit of empathy for all living beings.

Faith has a key role to play in my life, without it how could I be sure? Reason will never give surety. When times get tough I put on my Christian garb and I am sure in the fact that nothing can hurt me. This life is a precious and fleeting thing, every day let's resolve to enjoy it! :-)