0
0
In the Book of Ezekiel, which is where today’s 1st reading is from, we hear that we are called to “dissuade the wicked from his way.” It goes on to say that we are responsible for the wicked if we don’t speak out against their evil ways.
That sounds like some serious responsibility on our part. And there are people who misinterpret this to mean condemning others to hell, or standing on a public corner and shouting horribly hateful things to people within earshot.
Let’s clear some things up: To dissuade is not to condemn. To dissuade is not to go up to random people, or even people you’ve met, and telling them to stop sinning. Because that won’t work.
Wanting people to believe in God and to follow His ways is a good thing. But if you really want to have an impact on someone, to convert them, to help them become a better person, you need to give more than just your belief. You have to give them more than just your words.
You have to give them your time. And I know what you’re thinking:
via GIPHY
But don’t worry, I’m not saying that you need to give up any of your time for this. Just give up God’s time.
What’s God’s time you ask?
Well, who created time?
It’s a silly thought isn’t it? We keep saying we don’t have time to pray, and that we have to make time for God. But the reality is that all the time we have on this earth we got from God – shouldn’t we be more than willing to give Him first dibs on it?
So we give that time to God by giving some of it to others. We spend time with the people in our lives (or the people God puts in our lives) to build relationships with them, to get to know them, and to show them they are loved. Once this has been established, we have a better chance of bringing those people to the Church.
Now, there is a danger here – we can start to think of every person we meet as someone we need to convert or to change. We can focus on people’s sins and not on the people. I have a friend who just told me that the reason he stepped away from the Church is because he felt he was focusing too much on how he could bring someone to the Church, instead of focusing on the person. I’ll admit it as well that as I’ve been reducing the types of sins I commit (I still sin more than I should, but the sins that I commit are more of the same instead of all kinds of different ones), I’ve been putting myself up on a pedestal and looking at people as those I need to share the Gospel with. The problem is, trying to convert people is only part of the Gospel message. It’s something that I’m working on. I know in my heart that I’m no better than anyone around me – but those thoughts pop in my head (just like when someone cuts you off when you’re driving and you get angry at them for being a horrible driver, even though you’ve done the same thing to someone else). The other, more important part of the Gospel (in my opinion), is sharing Christ’s love with others.
So here’s a step-by-step process of what you should do:
- Love God.
- Show kindness, love, and compassion to everyone around you – ya know, the whole ‘love they neighbor’ thing. This includes, friends, family, coworkers, actual neighbors, the poor, the rich, the left, the right (and everything in between), those you like, those you don’t like – like, the literal definition of ‘everyone.’
- Work on sinning less.
- If any of those people ask you about your faith or their faith (which probably means they trust you and are open to hearing your thoughts), share the crap out of it. If they don’t ask, then just keep doing steps 1-3.
Remember, it’s the Holy Spirit, not you, that converts hearts. We are just called to work with It. Which means not to work against it. And when you use hateful language, judgment, and condemnation, you are definitely working against it.
