Recently my church held an annual autumn jubilee music festival in our churches local community.
It went rather well in my estimation. After being a part of a number of different type of ‘events’, this one was very smooth.
I had an opportunity to watch some human behaviors, ever do that? people watch?, I do. Especially when a group is involved.
The event went off without a hitch, but I witnessed some of my fellow church members operating in quite the anxious state.
My thought went to a bible verse that say’s, “be anxious for nothing”.
I was very calm, in a good mood, having a good ole’ time, all day, from showing up early to help load and after the event at the tear down.
Again everything went fine but as I worked with different people certain comments would be made about how folks were working together or how worried some were because the sound guy was having a small problem getting everything working.
I then tried to step back and see what if any cause for any anxiety would be.
My problem was we are all professing and practicing Christians and I felt the anxiety and issues were out of place.
Then the lesson ensued.
I started to compare my feelings with what others were telling me. A couple of the ladies couldn’t handle my cheery attitude early in the morning, nothing major, it just showed.
I started questioning all kinds of things about ‘others’ and what their words are versus what their actions were and how they did not quite hit the mark.
That went on for a few days after the event.
God then placed on my heart what I was doing. Judging.
Because when you compare yourself to someone else only one of two things is going to happen…
you get raised up above them and feel good, superior and all that
or
you get knocked down and make yourself feel bad because you have not, in your mind, attained to what the other person, in your mind, has attained to themselves.
Sounded like good ole’ fashion sin to me.
“Where’s your plank Dave?”
My question to a friend of mine was, “Then as a brother in Christ when is it my responsibility to say something?”
Think about this, “Maybe never.”
The apostle Paul spends a lot of words on living a life that is an example of Christ.
After the event, the next day at church service, we were able to share all the good things that came about during the event. Our church had some great interactions with the people in our community who really needed to hear about God.
A man sat down with a bottle of rum and had a talk with a deacon.
A lady working the concession stand had a talk with a gentleman about abortion.
A bag of marijuana was found in the bushes and discarded.
And a man who did not have enough money to purchase lunch for his whole family, even though we charged very minimal amounts for our concessions that day, had a church member step up and catch the tab, that’s what we were there for, right? To be God’s hands, feet and ears? To glorify Him? To testify about His son?
All good. Like I said, I had a great time.
I am old enough now, with enough experience to know…
how it could have went, so yea, I have something to compare it to.
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