Careful Where You Step

“so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others” – Romans 12:5

In the darkness I walked through the kitchen toward the refrigerator for a simple glass of orange juice.  A good way to start the day, by taking in some vitamin C.  Reaching for a glass, and setting it on the counter top, I felt the unevenness of the surface and the glass wobbled.  I’m sure you’ve been in a situation where time completely slows down and you know what is going to happen, yet for some reason you can’t or don’t react quick enough to stop it from happening.  So was the case on this particular morning.  I knew the glass was too close to the edge and that I had placed it on top of another object sitting on the counter.  Yet, I still took my hand away from the glass, and in doing so gave it the freedom to fall.  As the glass hit the tile floor, it shattered into hundreds of tiny shards of glass all around my bare feet, in the dark none the less.  Hmmm….what a predicament.

Realizing that where ever I chose to step at this point was very likely to produce a painful encounter as the glass would penetrate the flesh of my foot.  I stood perfectly still and allowed my mind to analyze the situation.  Reaching down into the drawer next to the sink I grabbed 2 or 3 dish towels and laid them out on the floor over the slivers of glass.  I spaced them far enough apart that I could take a few steps without stepping onto the tile and then move them to the tile in front of me in order to take a few more steps.  I proceeded across the kitchen floor in this manner until I was into the hallway free from any danger.

I avoided the pain and suffering, caused when a shard of glass penetrates your skin, by using other parts of my body in a fashion to protect the part in trouble.  In the same manner, as brothers and sisters in Christ we are called to help those who are heading into troubled situations in life.  We are bound by the belief in One Savior, One God and One Heaven.  This kinship draws us to support one another in situations of unrighteousness and temptation.  Holding each other accountable to the love, grace and mercy that has been freely given by God the Father, we are to love each other in the same manner, giving of ourselves to protect the other from harm and making bad choices.  We are one body of believers designed intricately by the Creator of the universe to help one another.  Look around yourself today, to your right and to your left there are brother’s and sister’s in desperate risk of stepping on glass.  Reach out to them with the love of God today.  

Prayer:

Heavenly Father,
My Savior, my King.  You have given me life in order to help spread Your good news.  My purpose in life is to love others as You have loved me and to bring Your word to those who need it.  Protect me Lord throughout the day as I make choices.  Let these choices exemplify Your love and grace, and let others be influenced for Your glory, as a result.  Help me identify the areas in which I can help my fellow man today, and show me how to love them as you do.  In Your name I pray – Amen

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