Poor in Spirit

It’s a new year. It doesn’t always seem like anything is “new,” but it is. If you think of it as new challenges, it comes into better focus.

I fear that we are done with challenges, but we can do this. Our first and most foremost challenge is to silence the noise around us. There is a need to be informed, I suppose, but take a day off. Just for today, refuse to let Biden, Trump, Pelosi, Rand Paul, Hannity, the news at six o’clock, or any other “voice” into your head and heart. Breathe deeply. Build a dollhouse in your mind. Now, make them go to their rooms and think about all of the angry things they have said or done. Sit them there on the pink, plastic beds. Put one in the baby’s bed. He/she can stand at the rails and look sullen. Just for today, they do not get access to the living room with its comfy fireplace and braided rug.

Now, with them gone, move on to who you are, who you want to be, and how you want to process life. I am going to talk scripture for a minute, so if that offends, pass on this one—something general will be back next week.

Jesus first spoke to us in the beatitudes. And in the first beatitude, he said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” This sounds like a paradox, but that’s okay. We can handle a paradox. Add the word “their” and it will make more sense. “Blessed are the poor in their spirit.”

Think of yourself as a test tube. We begin with filling our spirit. Our parents first influence this, then the bigger world. Eventually, we are parts of every experience and every person who has touched us. The doctor who handed us off on that first day with an ever-so-slight warning that we “might” have problems later on, the mother who was not good at one thing or another, the teacher who should have retired or the father who just wasn’t there are all in there. Jesus says to pour that out. Start over with what you see in him. His kindness, his love for all, his frustration with evil leaders, his strength that would go to the cross are all examples for our spirit.

Think of those up in their rooms.  Have you seen them show love for all? Have you seen them encourage? Are they truthful or just telling the truth that bends others to their will? Are they interested in people being better, kinder, and more moral or are they interested in dividing us to increase their power and greed? Jesus never spoke to increase his power or greed. If there was credit, he gave it to his Father. If there was money, he paid it out for basic necessities. Picture the faces of power brokers. How often are they angry faces, twisted in frustration and pretending they are holy? They are up in their rooms screaming in anger—I certainly hope you thought to close the door behind them.

We need to refill our spirits. Every person who is full of grace is an asset to the world. It is not your vote that is important, it is how you treated the last cashier, wait staff, or human whose life you touched. That person you yelled at needed your kindness. That word you yelled was like throwing a physical knife at someone’s heart. It is better to be defrauded than to fill our spirit with anger. If the people around you are causing your spirit to suffer, it is time to move away from them. If you are causing others to suffer, it is time to change.

Think of what your expression is showing. Evil thoughts are mirrored on our faces unless we have seared our consciences to hide them. Our test tubes are not a pretty sight, sometimes. They are green and black and boiling and ready to burst out of their tops with all manner of bad things. Refill your spirit with kindness, love, and grace for others. Leave your barista better than you found him/her. Listen for the Lord’s forgiving voice. And as for those up in their room, go ahead and leave them up there until they can behave.