Epiphany
Saturday, January 6, 2018
Is. 60:1-6; Ps. 72:1-7, 10-14; Eph. 3:1-12; Matt. 2:1-12
A LOVE NOTE FROM GOD
This year I had hospitalizations, but I am not going to talk about that. I want to share a change that I see as a love note from God. What happened was that as I lay there, I decided to pray. I was soon interceding for family, friends, and strangers, but then I was interrupted. It was almost as though God said, “I know, I know, but what about these other people. They need love.”
Then I saw every doctor, nurse, and technician who had taken care of me. I was a bit taken aback to see about forty people, some of whom I did not remember. In any case it quickly became apparent that I was to love them as my neighbors, not merely thank them. It also became obvious that I was not seeing these people as my friends. So, I started praying for them one at a time, and I seemed to have ample time.
Did you notice the word “change” above? Whenever someone came to take my vitals or just check up on me or even give me a pill, I started talking to them, in effect befriending them. I asked how they got into this kind of job, and they told me, sometimes in warm detail. I asked them why they got into this kind of job, and I received some very thoughtful answers. There were many stories, but in each case something profound and moving had happened to them, and occasionally they almost–or actually did–shed tears.
Maybe this is what God meant to happen when he told us to love our neighbor, and why Jesus repeated it.
–Jim Strange