Picking and Choosing

My 8 yr old daughter tried out for a play at her school this past week. The lead is the role of Ramona Quimby. After two or three days of auditions and call-backs, she was placed as the understudy of the lead role. I sort of saw it as second place over all the others that tried out, but she saw it as having to do all the work and never getting to be on stage. I told her that she could always slip the girl in the lead role a little bit of swine flu on her lunch, but that would probably be overdoing it. So, Riley was a little sad at first, but soon began to see the role as a chance to learn and possibly even play the lead role in one of the performances. In her eyes, at first, she thought of the whole deal as, 'I wasn't good enough.' I see where she is coming from.

I thought more about picking and choosing; how our world system is based on performance, talent, influence, and resources. We are constantly being graded and evaluated by others. Some are included because they dress well or are considered pretty or handsome. Others are invited into influential positions (even in our churches) based on their net financial worth. Still more are considered funny because they make people laugh, and others are paid millions because they can catch a ball or run fast.

Everything is based on performance. People are picked and chosen based on what they can do or not do, and how well they can do it compared to others.

As I was reading through Mark's account of Jesus calling Levi, I was refreshed and reminded that how Jesus picks and chooses is based on a system that is entirely opposite of the world's system. Nothing is earned when it comes to the gospel. Nothing. Everything is freely given. Jesus gave totally of himself. Then he pursues us in order to give us something we have done absolutely nothing to deserve. It is the absurd reality of the gospel.

I only wish that we would begin to see each other more and more through this lens. Perhaps we would take more time to get to know people who are not influential, those who are poor, powerless, boring, addicted, lonely, quiet, shy, guilty, etc. Perhaps grace would be a greater and more needed and useful tool in our dealings with each other, because we find ourselves in relationships with those who desperately need it.