Agendas

It is hard to imagine adults behaving as a team with another’s interest at heart.  As often and intensely as we talk about teamwork, community, and doing things for others, most adults function with an explicit hierarchy driving every decision.  We do what is best for our self.  If that is satisfied, we consider families, often for selfish reasons.  Then, maybe we look out for others.  This reflects my life more often than I am willing to admit!
 
Yesterday I was rushing to work.  I knew I wasn’t going to make my appointment.  Regardless I pushed on.  A mom with a baby a stroller was just beginning the process of negotiating the stairs.  A stranger came into the frame.  Without hesitation, he reached out to help, assuring the young mother how we all needed to lend a helping hand at times.  I was so focused I almost didn’t hear his words.  As they echoed across my soul, my awareness of the world around me rapidly expanded.  What was my agenda for the day?  Did it include anyone other than me?  Was I willing to engage in a greater world?
 
As harsh as the questions might sound, it got worse!  I fell into a common trap.  As I watched the selfish act of another I found myself reacting like those before me.  “Far-flung ocean islands see it and panic.  The ends of the earth are shaken.  Fearfully they huddle together.  They try to help each other out, making up stories in the dark.  The godmakers in the workshops go into overtime production, crafting new models of no-gods, urging one another on—‘Good job!’  ‘Great design!’—pounding in nails at the base so that the things won't tip over.”  (Isaiah 41.5-7)  I did not want to see anyone in need; I had “stuff” to do.  I was not willing to hear; I had a mission.  I was not willing to act; I need to protect myself.     
 
Life is more than “I”.  It is community.  Knowing and acting on this premise is the key to living beyond today’s agenda.