When you relate to other people, what do you immediately
pull from your hat of life experiences, and why? Do you look at their shirt,
emblazoned with some mainstream slogan like “YOLO,” and tell them the story of
your last near-death encounter? Do you see the dark circles around their eyes
and ask them how they've been doing lately? Or do you just smile, say hi, and
wait for them to talk?
I used to tell people about the horses I worked with and
their latest escapades. Now, after I've been out there in the world and begun
relating to people, I wouldn't just run up to someone and start blabbing about
horses. Not that horses (or talking about them) is a bad thing. Don’t get me wrong,
I still love horses and I always will. But not
everyone likes horses. When I was twelve, that hit me like a freight train.
“Why on earth would anyone be afraid of
horses?!”
Anymore, I've learned that it’s better to ask someone else
what they’re into before I start talking about my life. That eliminates a lot of
awkwardness when a subject is not seen in the same light by both parties. I
mean, seriously, why should I get in a debate with someone about horses being
better than dogs? To each his own. There is no ethical or moral proof that
horses are exponentially superior. Therefore, I shall not bother.
The “ask first” method also says, “I’m interested in you
as a person, I find you to have worth and importance, and I want to learn more
about you!” Nothing says that you’re a true, kind, caring Christian like
wanting to get to know someone without judging their political or social
standing.
But once you get to that point, where the ice is broken
and you have your “Conversation Buddy” engaged, what do they see?
When I talk to people, I hope that they see Christ’s love
in me. I don’t want to be giving them my sob story, trying to gain sympathy –
because, trust me, I do that a lot and it drives me crazy. I want to accept
people as they are, not try to change them. I want them to see that it’s really
only God who can give people true joy, and that there is truly nothing special about
me but His saving grace.
So what do YOU come across as? A video-gamer, an animal
lover, a Potterhead (guilty), a fan of some obscure TV shows, or maybe even a
Pinterest junkie? Name your genre. I can be seen as equal parts of any of those
things.
Don’t get me wrong, those things can be used in good
ways, but like money, they are neutral – neither a source of evil nor a source
of goodness. They can be used to do good, or they can be used in perverse or
otherwise destructive ways. But is that how you wish to be defined? By the
world’s trends and popular notions?
I for one choose to be defined by the love and sacrifice
of my Savior. There could certainly be nothing nobler than that.
