Discrimination is something that has become culturally abhorrent in our society, as it should be. We are so careful not to sound discriminatory. It is all part of being ‘politically correct’. But have we thereby become less discriminatory? No, I think we have just gotten better at disguising our discriminatory attitudes. Discrimination arises from insecurity in the human heart, and though we may suppress it for the sake of political correctness, if the insecurity remains, so will the discrimination. We all feel good when we get attention from ‘important’ people. You may even find yourself prioritising time with people of higher social standing than those of lower. There are people who we see as more beneficial to us and others less so. There are many people who we might see as being draining and ‘high-maintenance’. In all this there is a deep attitude problem: in each case we are looking at the person as a ‘means-to-an-end’. We tend to feel that it is best for us to be with people who make us more secure. And yet, for many of us, the most rewarding relationships are those which elicit the most love from us, as with our children. This is a clue to what really benefits us the most. What we need the most is to love and be loved. You cannot receive love if you yourself are unable to love. The door through which love goes out is the same one through which love comes in. The less ‘lovable’ the people, the wider the door must be opened and more love can get in.
Think about who most needs your love today.
Read James 2:1-13
