Leprosy is not a common illness in our society. I’ve been dwelling on the question lately: “Who are the lepers of society in our culture?” Who are the people whom society tends to look through as if they aren’t there? Who are the people who get marginalized into non-existence? More importantly, are there those that my path crosses that I tend to treat as lepers?
Society tries to teach us that it is okay to push aside people who are not like us. The lesson is that blunt, but the net effect is there. When I take an honest, introspective evaluation of my heart, I come up wanting. Unfortunately I tend to build walls, dare I say that I put on blinders, when it comes to certain people groups. Sure I say the right things, I even extend myself to help them… but how often do I actually extend my heart?
That introspective look often points to my own unclean heart! I should be shouting “Unclean! Unclean!” Thankfully, Jesus embraces me. I need to embrace others the way Jesus embraces me!
Working on that…
