Our Bible study provided a jewel again, this time from the study guide. Luke's Message, Good News for the New Mellennium, a study by J. Ellsworth Kalas. In Chapter 5, he says it is very nearly impossible for any analyst to look at a problem from an objective point of view.
I used to work for the Bureau of Reclamation and found it both amusing and frustrating that there seemed to be no way to please the fishermen, the farmers, the environmentalists, and the general public. Environmentalist and fishermen say, take the dam out. Farmers said, if you do that we'll flooding in the spring, drought in the summer, and be bankrupt by fall. General public said, we need water to drink and bathe in--but it shouldn't cost anything. And some folks protested whichever way the Government went just because it was the Government.
We all have tunnel vision...or are nearsighted, whichever you like. I see the things that concern me. My busy-ness precludes others' needs for help. My kids deserve a break or a second chance, but yours should get what's coming to them. It's okay if I fudge on my income tax, but you should pay the penalty.
Where does it end? When will we be able to find our glasses, widen our viewpoints, and give others the grace we want for ourselves? Why don't we try to understand each others' differences? How can God work through us when we'd rather have our own way?
Lord, grant us some grace glasses, please!
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