Our last blog post talked about truly seeing the people around us. Too often we interact with individuals as co-workers, opposing counsel, waiters, classmates, clients, or even friends and family members. But we fail to see them as real, vulnerable, strong, infinitely valuable, incredibly complex people.
I know that I often fail to treat the people I meet with the love and respect they are due. I see the exterior, and not the image of God inside of them. Still, since I know that I am commanded to love, I try to love more. I try to push through interpersonal differences. I put the emphasis on my actions. But what if we need the Lord to change more than our doing — what if we need Him to first heal our seeing? What if the experience of loving our neighbor starts, not with the action of service, but with taking time to see them for who they are and who they were created to be?
Recently, the New York Times posted an editorial article with the provocative title: “To Fall in Love with Anyone, Do This.” The article described the author’s journey through an evening with a friend where they discussed increasingly personal questions, followed by four minutes of looking into the other person’s eyes. The author notes at the end of the article:
I wondered what would come of our interaction. If nothing else, I thought it would make a good story. But I see now that the story isn’t about us; it’s about what it means to bother to know someone, which is really a story about what it means to be known.
Mandy Len Catron, New York Times, January 11th 2015
While we can’t recommend this exact course of action for every situation, the author may have stumbled on a key truth: God has created us to love, and love is the natural response when we take the time to truly see and know another person. If the first step toward loving our neighbor is seeing them, perhaps the first step toward seeing them is taking time to look. Maybe we can’t really see people as we drive by or rush through our to-do list. Perhaps love comes with time, and not just the other way around.
Our challenge to you this week: make time to see people. Perhaps start with family members, co-workers, or acquaintances. Plan to volunteer at one of our legal clinics and spend some face time with our clients and supporters. Get involved in a service opportunity. In whatever way you can, pause and take the time to see those around you. And then don't be too surprised when you find yourself loving them more.
Our challenge to you this week: make time to see people. Perhaps start with family members, co-workers, or acquaintances. Plan to volunteer at one of our legal clinics and spend some face time with our clients and supporters. Get involved in a service opportunity. In whatever way you can, pause and take the time to see those around you. And then don't be too surprised when you find yourself loving them more.
