I face an awkward choice. Do I focus on the dysfunctional behavior or what needs to be done? Do I confront the errors, mistakes, and ignorance? Can I only draw people into what should be?
The answer is probably both. I say probably because I am not sure. I do know if I only focus on dealing with the negative I will never get to the positive.
I know this, and yet… Each example I could bring will have a call to action. There are amble reasons to deal with the issues at hand. They are destructive. Each action takes away from what could and should be. Yet dealing with them comes with at a price. It takes more people to respond to evil. Each person that turn away from positive change to deal with evil takes away from the moment towards good. While some are requested, is it everyone?
My heart and experience tell me that fighting evil is best accomplished by doing good. People are attracted to positive change. People enjoy being part of a community focused on making a difference. Individuals want to contribute towards something greater than what they see as “I”.
The world we live in is messy. Change is everywhere. Data and information floods our senses. There are far too many people, places, and things demanding our attention.
As complex, complicating, and chaotic as it seems, the choice is rather simple. I can fill up my life striving to make a positive difference or I can empty my life of what is less than perfect. The latter helps, however acting to make a difference is the only step forward.
A wisdom father commented on our choice; “if we walk in the light, God himself being the light, we also experience a shared life with one another, as the sacrificed blood of Jesus, God’s Son, purges all our sin.” (1 John 1.7) Few choose to walk in the light. It is a viable alternative that, in due course, deals with the junk in our lives. Filling up trumps empty.
