Greetings Dear Reader,
I love lists. I used
to try to fit everything into a list. I
use them for decision making, event planning, and journey preparation. When I was discussing dealing with the anger
in my heart with a friend, she said, “I always knew you had a list.” She referred to those with whom I had unresolved
anger.
When I spent the year of 2019 reordering my thinking about
love, I realized that I needed another list.
This list would be different from those I had made in the past. It needed to be a list used to justify any
measure of refusing to love another human.
I needed to be able to place love of others in perspective to their
faults and failures.
The list had to work like this: getting on the list of those
from whom I am allowed withhold showing love required that you pass two very specific
tests. The first was the severity of
your offense as it related to me personally.
I am not saying that the offense
could be vague. I am not counting people
who commit heinous offenses who I do not know.
It is a waste of time and resources to hate anyone who I have not
met. It also violates the second rule,
which we will consider momentarily.
The list of offenses is simple to create. Lies, irresponsibility, and unkindness make
the list easily. Racism, violence, and
murder are obvious. Mistreatment, abuse,
and human trafficking are things I clearly hate. Greed, avarice, and coveting have to be
included. Being that some of these
things are worse to me than others, I ordered the list in that way.
It is easy to find ways in this list to shun others. It is simple to affix labels and categorize people
into pods of rejection based on their crimes and sins. This is why the second filter is necessary to
the list. To remain on the list of those
to whom I can withhold active, demonstrable love one must pass both tests. The second filter is that I will withhold
active love from anyone that Jesus refuses to love.
It goes like this, “If he is a controlling narcissist (fill
whatever justification you have for withholding love from someone) and Jesus
does not love him, I will withhold showing love to him.” You see, Dear Reader, we have to hold on to
that latter filter with everyone that has breath. That filter is the one we are commanded to
use. The demand from the one who forgives
our evil and loves us no matter what we do is to love our enemies, neighbors,
and strangers. We are to love our family
and show them love no matter what.
We are to hold on to love at any cost. I mean that.
I have failed at it and so have you.
We justify our lack of love because of what others have done to us. The only thing that heals others is
love. The Father’s love for us can see
us through loving those who make the first part of the list because of the
second filter. You need not be perfect
to say this. There are those who refuse
to show me love because of my past failures.
This is not how we would wish to be treated. This is the heart of “do unto others as you
would have done unto you.”
If we make a list of those unworthy of our love, what we are
really making is a list of those we have not forgiven. We are calling out those for whom we need to
have compassion, kindness, and unconditional love. If we do not wish to be rejected for our
failures, how can we think it is allowable to reject others due to theirs?
Holding on to love is what gives us the power to see the
needs of others and at times meet them.
Moving past all of the hatred and anger gives us freedom to follow in a
way that makes the journey easier and less painful. It is not easy to get to that point and
requires maintenance but it is worth it.
I will hold on to the idea that no one belongs on this list. I will
follow the example of Jesus and count on him to give me the strength to do it.
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 ͡°)
Every human story is part of the great story that leads
to the Father getting everything back to Good.
Contacts for Aramis
Thorn:
#aramisthorn
Bookings: aramisthorn@aramisthorn.com
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