Greetings Dear Reader,
I have been doing my own laundry since I was ten. I was well into my twenties before I learned the
value of the delicate cycle setting on a washing machine. It cleans more fragile fabrics with less agitation
a gentler spin cycle. It is like hand
washing without the hands-on effort.
This very simple way to clean less-durable fabrics still
uses the strength of the washing machine.
It merely applies that power in a way that extracts the dirt without
damaging that which is dirty. It gives us
what we need without doing damage.
This translates to us so clearly in the idea that we are to
be gentle with each other. Too many of
our fellow travelers wield the Gospel as a weapon. They try to bash others with
truth and anger instead of using love, grace, and mercy to be good to those in
need of the truth. Throughout the history
of the Church, we have strayed into modes of forcing faith onto others, even
those that are violent, cruel, and heinous.
We are required to be gentle. Further, we can be gentle infinitely if we
choose to be so. The idea of coercion,
shame, and guilt being used to draw others to follow Christ is foolish. It is also counter to the idea that we are to
deal with each other in love. We are to
be set permanently on the gentle cycle.
We are not to use agitation to change things unless it is the result of
gentle loving truth.
The violence of the world is to be foreign to us. It is to be a part of us that we exhibit
gentle peace. We are not supposed to be
ruffled by the difficulties that others send our way. We are instead to present bountiful gentle
responses that yield evidence of the love we hold for others. This too comes from the plentiful provision
that Christ promises in our journey home.
This is the setting we are given as the means to show others our love,
kindness, mercy, and grace. This is how
we are to interact, always Dear Reader.
The idea of an analogy from a washing machine has its
limitations. This standard of gentleness
in all we do, however, is a clear way to stand out from others. It is a clear way to show others that they
are safe and that we will be good to them at every turn. We do not have to do it in our own strength as
the Father promises to give us the power through the Spirit to accomplish this. We can be gentle in all things if we
choose. It is what works.
Wishing you joy in the journey,
Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every
writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a
homeowner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure
store.”
(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Contacts for Aramis
Thorn:
Bookings: aramisthorn@aramisthorn.com
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment