Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“‘If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. Because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world—therefore the world hates you.”
NL Daily Devotion for Wednesday, March 23, 2022
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Someone once told me, “If everybody likes you, you’re not doing enough service.” As a lifelong perfectionist people-pleaser (and a socially awkward introvert to boot) I have a few hang-ups about people not liking me. It’s like the mushroom that walks into a bar and the bartender says, “We don’t serve your kind in here” and the mushroom says, “Why not? I’m a fungi.” Fungi. Fun guy. Get it?
But I digress (is anyone shocked?). One of the most important lessons I have been taught over and over and over again in my recovery journey is “What other people think of me is none of my business.” Period. End of story. Easier said than believed, of course, but I can say I’ve come a long way on this front. The only one whose opinion of me matters is God. And guess what? God thinks I’m pretty awesome. And God calls me into the world to work for justice. That work is not popular with everyone. I sometimes worry just a smidge about how often I write in these devotions about it, wondering if I’m offending anyone by some of my more overtly political statements as they relate to my faith. Yet the call to speak the truth is stronger than my desire to have everyone like me.
Likewise, we as Christians can’t be held back from our call to serve God and God’s children (i.e. everyone) because we want approval from the world. I love how Jesus says that we do not belong to the world. It doesn’t own us. We are God’s. Sure, we have to live in the world, but we don’t have to let it rule over us. Easier said than done, I know. Believe me, I know. May God remind you whose you are, and that you are loved so deeply and fiercely by God that the opinions of the world don’t matter one bit.
Do I let my fear of confrontation keep me from what I feel is God’s call?
