Free Radicals
by Shawn McEvoy "Woe to you when all men speak well of you..." - Luke 6:26 The biggest reason I've not yet written the book I've got jangling around in my brain is that deep down I still actually believe a complete impossibility: that hidden between my mind and my keyboard are the magic, just-right words that will get everyone to agree. On everything. Or at least, on everything as I have interpreted it. The words that will get Christians to start treating sinners as they treat themselves, and sinners to stop sinning. Phrases that will be so beautifully turned that neither liberal nor conservative will have aught to say about them. A book that will bring everyone together, and that, most importantly, will not cause anyone to write me nasty letters, claim I am deluded, or call me an idiot. The irony, of course, is that my goal is already shot. The idea itself is delusional, and pure idiocy. And as the saying goes, if you want everyone to like you, nobody will. So what should be the goal? Well, truth, sure. And being obedient to simply be the vehicle through which God wants to impart a particular take on His Truth. But why is that so hard? I think it could be that we continually re-invent Jesus, who is both uncomplicated and difficult to parse, who already lived here before me, whose words are already recorded for anyone to read. The Lord called Himself 'the Truth' while giving us a version of how to walk on this planet that is so contrary, so impractical, so frustratingly (if I hope to be honest about it) radical. Referring back to what I already admitted at the top of this devotional, bear with me as I turn Christ's Great Sermon from Luke 6 into something of a dialogue... Jesus (vs. 26): Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for in the same way their fathers used to treat the false prophets. Me: Ew. Cut to the chase about what I'm going through, why don't you? So I've set myself on the path of the false prophet, have I? Swell; I knew I couldn't trust myself. But Lord, anything else I say or write or do is going to lead to having enemies, people who are upset with me. What do I do about that? Jesus (vs. 27-28): Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Me: Oh... so it's an action thing instead of an avoidance thing. Pretty mind-boggling concepts. I can't help but notice you didn't say, "bash those jerks' heads in with rightness." Because that feels more natural, Lord. But assuming you're on to something, what does that look like in practice? | 
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