Be very sure now, you who have been trained to a self-sufficient maturity, that you enter into a generous common life with those who have trained you, sharing all the good things that you have and experience.
Don’t be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest. The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—-ignoring God!—-harvests a crop of weeds. All he’ll have to show for his life is weeds! But the one who plants in response to God, letting God’s Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life.
So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit. Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the people closest to us in the community of faith.
Galatians 6:6-10
What Ya Gonna Get?
What a journey, sweet sisters! As we near the end, or the never-ceasing continuation, there are two things we must realize; there is no even distribution of burdens in this life, and there is no even distribution of strengths. Life is not equal in that sense. For this reason, this is a “one another” journey. We must make our journey of freedom in good company. Where I am weak, you are strong.
When I was little, my catchphrase was, “me do it.” I had a stinging desire to be fiercely independent. And to a great extent, my mother let me fail as often as necessary. Isn’t independence everyone’s goal in this life as we grow up? Needing help shows weakness. However, we soon find ourselves without needs; a person without needs is a person without companions. The word for that is “isolation.” The gospel creates another kind of freedom. Christ sets us free to give!
Freedom is not a self-sufficient life. It is a shared life. The ideal is not independence but interdependence. The goal is not to operate as a single unit but freely open and loving, giving and receiving. The act of giving develops this free life.
Since there is no equal distribution of burdens, strengths, and even knowledge, each of us has something to share. We have something to give. Sometimes we are the ones in need of help, and sometimes we are the helper. In either situation, we deepen our sense of freedom. Our strength no longer imprisons us, and our needs no longer paralyze us. It is a life of reciprocity.
No soul is a single unbroken line of ascent to perfection, nor is it the same for damnation. We all have sinned and fall short. Life in Christ sets us free for grace. It’s a world of giving. God gives; we give.
We are free to give. However, we are not free to not give. Not giving is imprisoning; it reduces the scope of living. Paul puts it pretty plainly; you reap what you sow. Sooner or later, we all sit down to a banquet of results or consequences. I imagine sitting down to a meal with those who have joined us on the path. What will we eat? Words of encouragement along the way, prayers of intercession, and acts of helping are all seeds we sow along our journey. But then there are the words of criticism, every avoidance of compassion, and every indulgence of greed that will also mature. There is no deception with this. The uses and misuses of freedom, whether private or public, will result in public (out in the open, not hidden) results. It’s a sobering thought. We must look out, not only for ourselves but for each other.
Sisters, this journey is not for the lazy; they gave up, turned around, and went back downhill. Please keep placing one foot in front of the other, and we will make it together! This journey is an ever-on-your-toes journey traveled in community—-receiving and giving, contending and helping, sowing and reaping. What an action-packed adventure.