Les Henson
How different are we as God’s people from our neighbours, the people we work with and those we regularly encounter in the context of our daily lives? The problem in asking such a question is that far too many Christian people will respond to the question with a series of negatives, outlining the things we don’t do rather than the positive things we do that cause those around us to stand up and pay attention to the way we live. Our non-Christian friends and acquaintances are already aware of the things that Christians don’t do, whether rightly or wrongly. Yet, holiness is about living lives that are whole and wholesome. What if we focused more on the positives of living and working for the common good of those around us rather than always emphasising that which we are against.
Stanley Hauerwas writes, “Nothing enslaves more than that which we think we cannot live without.” What if we lived lives truly set free from that which enslaves the world around us and demonstrated by our actions how Jesus makes that possible. What if we lived lives free from the spirit of over consumption and displayed that people matter more than stuff? What if what if our focus was on the community in which we lived and its wellbeing, and the common good rather than ourselves and our own prosperity? What if instead of focusing on our own rights and freedoms we focused on our responsibilities for those around us? I wonder what different that would make to the neighbourhood in which we live and the world around us.