Crossing Lines

     Have you noticed that no one appears to be listening? We talk over one another. We get ready to make a response before we hear another voice. Everyone has a story. Everyone is made in the image of God. With so much competition, with so many polarized views, with so many hearts turned cold, maybe we can make a difference.

     Jesus walked into the lives of the marginalized of society, healing the demon-possessed, forgiving the adulterers, dining with the greedy, giving hope to the lost.  Jesus came for everyone, even those most would choose to avoid or ignore.

On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:17

     Maybe the people we most want to avoid are just the people God has placed in our lives. Listening and loving is no easy task. Only through God’s own love and mercy given to us, can we reach out to others. After all, Jesus saved us while we were yet sinners.

But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

Jesus,

Your grace knows no boundaries. Your love crosses political lines, picket lines, protest lines, cultural lines and religious lines. You hold the hope for all humanity. Help us to cross the lines of society as You did. We need Your courage, Your strength, Your power.

Amen