Tuesday, July 13, 2010

My dear God,

We sat in a four and a half hour town hall meeting. A neighbor had asked us to attend about a matter regarding our downtown. All during the meeting several of us felt agitated over the way the meeting was being conducted. One person after another stood at the microphone to say pretty much the same thing. We spent an inordinate amount of time talking about two things: parking (perpendicular or parallel) and bumpouts. How much time does it take to talk about such small concerns?

When Harold and I got back home, we were slap happy, poking fun at the leaders. As we lay in bed we laughed and laughed. But just before we went to sleep, I took his hand and began to pray our nightly prayer. That was when it hit me what we had just done. Mockery of community leaders is not one of the good qualities of a Christian. I confessed to you and gave thanks for those who lead our villages, towns and cities. Few people want to give themselves to service to others. Even if they need more training or are not as professional as we think they should be, we have no right to condemn someone who cares about our communities. We were wrong.

That was a lesson for me. I realize it is very easy to criticize and judge others when I am setting back doing nothing much for the community to which I belong. Why would anyone want to be a community leader if they have to be endure such treatment?

O Lord,
bless our
community leaders,
those who
give themselves
to the
good cause
of taking care
of their neighbors.
Teach me
to be humble,
to pray,
to listen
and learn.
Reduce my need
to judge others.
Lead me
in your way,
I pray.

Love, Andrea