I have a question for you: What is one thing that concerns you the most about the COVID-19 crisis?
For me, the answer to that question would be how our political leaders (in both parties) and the media have used it as an excuse to divide the United States by breaking down the population in to groups so we can treat people differently. If you’re 65 or older, watch out! If you’re under 14, you’re OK!
Beyond chronological groups, we also have all sorts of information about different groups of people based on ethnicity, pre-morbidity conditions, where you live or a seemingly endless list of other conditions.
And now, in the midst of a heated political campaign that everyone swears will be the most important election in the history of mankind – and folks, we’re talking thousands of years here, the media is highlighting the importance of “targeted marketing.” Campaigns will be spending huge amounts of money on databases to send out different messages to different groups based on more factors than I can comprehend. So I probably won’t be too surprised when I get an e-mail letting me know that Trump or Biden either love or hate my dog Domino – who is arguably, by all accounts, the greatest dog in the world.
This “divisiveness” theme came up when our team met about this week’s Words of Encouragement. That’s when Brent suggested that we highlight the value that here in the United States we are, proverbially speaking, “all in the same boat!” And while it’s painfully obvious that there are different sections of the boat, we all have the ability – whether in a big or small way, to help make the boat more “sea worthy.”
For example, Brent noted that recently he was sitting at a busy intersection waiting for the red light to turn green. That is when he noticed the cars in the left turn lane started backing up. He also noticed that a large size truck with the sign “WIDE LOAD” was attempting to turn right onto the street.
It looked like gridlock would ensue. But then Brent noted how cool it was when cars started moving in concert and backing up so the truck could turn, without causing an accident with drivers who might not be anticipating their actions. The drivers also decided to make a little sacrifice and give up a relatively small amount of time and sit through the green left turn arrow (that came and went) so the truck could pull through and everyone could go safely on their way. A small sacrifice, but a great demonstration of how we can all work together and make our daily lives a bit better.
As Brent shared this story, it reminded me of why our family has cherished the opportunity to build homes in Mexico with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) for over twenty years. When we get to the build sites, guess what? We don’t care a whit about gender, race, ethnicity, faith or any other attribute the media wants to highlight. What we really care about is this: Are you willing to swing a hammer, use a paint brush/roller, and come together to build a house in two days that will provide much needed shelter to a deserving family? If the answer to that is “Yes!” then come help us build!
I am fortunate to have a mentor that continually reminds me and others that: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, take someone with you.” And if we couple that advice with these words of encouragement from Paul’s words in Romans to “not think of yourself more highly than you ought...” then perhaps a willingness to occasionally make small sacrifices routinely, and larger ones when necessary, can all go a long way towards helping all of us build a better boat.
