(Thoughts) My 2 cents worth...

(Thoughts) My 2 cents worth...


How can we through this understand others better? As we have heard before but perhaps never understood too well, i shall repeat that of the point of understanding things from the other person's perspectives, or some people will put it across as “putting yourself in another's shoes”.

So lets just use the previous post as a reference point, that of the perspective of the poor widow. She is all the simplicity of her heart gave all that she had, because that was all, and was the best she knew she could give to the LORD. But what was the 2 copper coins that she gave? Pittance in those days, and this is very likely why Jesus had to call to the disciples attention this act of love, to allow them to understand the motives of the heart is far more important than the outwards showing, and in fact it should preceed it. And what the poor widow had shown clearly as she could, was that heart of gratitude and willingness, and that pleased the LORD.

However, sad as it may sound, many of us I think will fall into the category of overlooking and possibly even despising the seemingly small acts of kindness that someone may bring, and instead look to and admire what may seem showy, what may attract the attention of our eyes. Such is the condition of the heart in today's society. But it is not that which Christians are called to, for the purification of the heart through walking down life's paths led by the LORD is what we're called to do in fact, and with the purification of the heart happening in increasing measure, only then can we give forth love that He gives us in increasing measure as well.

In recent days I find a question upon my heart in fact, which is that how can it be that something that means so much to someone, can be meaningless to another? How can something that someone treasures so much and is so dear to his/her heart mean nothing to another? This question had confounded me increasingly, even though I knew that yeah it could have been due to a differences in opinion, and a differences in memories(from experience), differences in priorities and preferences between people – you get what I mean, the word is differences.

Do you know what I am talking about? Perhaps I can bring to you an simple example from my life that can help you understand. I used to have this pillow that I grew up with, from age 1 till about 11. It was a pillow that started of as my mattress, and then I outgrew it, it followed me almost whereever i went, to the UK and back to Singapore, so it had a factor of comfort and dearness to me. And you can imagine how it was a lil tattered, a lil smelly, faded in colour, out of shape from the repeated cleaning. But still it was dear to me, even though it was filth in the eyes of the world. Yeah so now do you get what I'm talking about?

So when we interact with people, how can we learn to put ourselves in their shoes? To know where they're coming from? I feel firstly it is important to get our heart's attitude right, which is to ask the LORD to teach us how to love this person for who he/she is, to appreciate the person in totality. After asking from God to teach you to know the person, of course you learn more about the person by listening to the person's life and spending time with the person, for the person him/her-self will be able to teach you as 2nd best to what he/she is really like. So in all this it is always good to put aside what presumptions we may have on a person's character, that may have stained our perspective on what the person is really like, causing biasness in the way we act towards him/her.

As we continue to know the person better, we increasingly cast aside more and more assumptions that we had on the person, and we do start learning one important thing. We learn how to love the person as he/she needs, to the best of our abilities, to the best for the person's life. We also learn to appreciate the efforts that the person puts into building up that friendship, such as the small words and acts of love and encouragement given to you along the way.

And I've to say one thing, when you really learn to appreciate people and the things they do for you, you will stop asking about why don't these people care for you in a certain way, beacuse you realise that they already do care for you in the way they think best, even though you know it may not be that which will meet your need. When you reach that point of understanding, the act itself truly becomes of secondary importance, and you appreciate so much the intention of love that was brought up by the person.

These are the very things that will form that fond memories in a person's life, and these memories are the very thing that keeps a man going when he experiences the trials of life, and is increasingly torn apart by them - when hopelessness looms for him, when he does not see any hope at all. So when we say we love someone, do we really?

When we talk all day about God's love and His sacrifices, the personal intimacy that He desires to have with us individually, how do we live that out? For the life of a Christian is more than just the talk we so often speak of, in fact it may be best that we never spoke at all, except that which is of utmost importance. How can we speak of love so so much, and yet love so so little? I am ashamed for us Christians who claim all that, but yet fail to see the needs, hear the cries of the needy that abounds. Have we seen and heard all this? Some have seen and heard, and turn away from them, saying that they will be others there for them. Some have not seend and heard, and continue to choose not to. What is your choice?

Do you understand what love really is? Do you? If you say yes, then I'll urge you to ask yourself again, because I believe this is one thing that we can only begin to learn, no matter the stage of life we're in, and this is one gift that is meant to be shared, and can only exist if we increasingly die to the love of our self.

In my own life, the LORD awakened me because of the pain i went through and still continue to possess in my body. I made my choices earlier in my life than most, and the LORD has lead me through them ever since. The choice was to allow me to see reality, to see truth, to embrace and learn to understand His love, that I may know how to love others as He has commanded us, the choice was to speak truth in love. Have you made your choices yet? Do not delay, for time is fleeting, and our lives will pass us by before we know it, never let it slip through your hands, the meaningful life that is led forth by the wisdom and love of God.

So what has been my choices today? It is to speak forth truth into the lives of others, and show the love of God to them as well as far as it is possible for me. It is to continue to labour and continue to hear the cries, and see the needs of the lonely and destitute, to not turn that blind eye and ear to them. Increasingly I find myself helpless in the face of it all, but it is them that I learnt to depend more on the LORD, and it is then i learn what faith is.

There is someone who asked me why “The wounded healer” by Henri J. Nouwen was a special book to me, one who asked me why am I so conscious in the way I view relationships. If you're reading this today, perhaps now you understand a little bit of why I am so. Certain choices we make, we make the best of what is given to us then, and making them, we do not look back, but keep looking forward as the LORD leads us, and we learn faith along the way, when we see the wounded abounding on that path we stop to help and love, and hence we learn love. So far that is life as I have been led to see.

I seem to have deviated away from the main point of the post, how can we understand people better? Let me sum it up, by being more unassuming – learning to accept people for who they are, by simple acts of listening to their life stories, by spending more time with them, and allowing one another to enjoy each others presence and establish memories and common understanding together. Most importantly, we ask the LORD to teach us to learn to love them, to learn to appreciate them.


Take care guys and God bless the rest of your week~


In His love,
Jon



Biblical References:

Ephesians 5:13-16
“13But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, 14for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said: "Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."15Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”

John 15:12
“My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.”

1 John 3:17-18
“17If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? 18Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”

1John 4:12
“12No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.”