Aug 7th, 2020: Difference Between Right and Wrong


A picture of a crowded high school hallway this week is not what many of us like to see. There is no observation of physical distancing and mask-wearing. I have many thoughts when I saw it. One is of frustration. One is of bewilderment. It is telling us that we live in a time when people would not trust anyone. Many years ago, medical doctors had some authority when they comment on health situations. Somehow we don't see the same response anymore. There is a total disregard for the threat of COVID-19 as the death toll continues to rise in the US. 

Why? We might ask. Maybe there is no absolute right or wrong anymore, and that has granted some people reasons not to do what is right. The demand for personal rights continues to play at the forefront of the news, the absence of the desire to do what is right for others seems celebrated. We witness such a moral contradiction. We fight for racial injustice and the protection of folks who have been suffering from it in one hand while instigating the condemnation of a specific group of people who believe that their health being threaten by the lack of proper safety protocol for COVID-19. 

Maybe over many years, we have witnessed and experienced the abuse of people or organizations who are in authority and supposed to protect us by guarding the truth and the dignity of all people. In some ways, I think the contemporary media, the leadership of some religious groups, the politicians, and other experts should shoulder that responsibility. We are dealing with the consequences of the sacrifice of truth. The absence of truth now creates many gaps. People will fill that gap with their versions of whatever that is.

Somehow as we watch the news and listen to many public officials, we have no idea what to believe and what to do. One thing we do know for sure, people are still dying today. I don't think God would grant us any privilege not to care. We should be merciful because we have received mercy. Remember that voice of God will ask us to have a caring heart and a tender spirit in responding to what we see.

Philippians 2:3-4

"Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others."

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