I Wrote It … And It’s Published!

Here is an excerpt from an article I wrote for the Christian Courier. Follow this link to read the full submission.

About a year ago a friend asked me, “What is the difference between doing and being?” The question stumped me because each time I thought of the act of being, it was associated with an equivalent act of doing: if I am this, I do that. The two seemed inseparable. It took me a few weeks of contemplation to express that while being is indeed often associated with doing, there has to be more to it than that. My being can’t be restricted to what I do, particularly what others see me doing; it has to be a deep-seated part of who I am, how I am, what the world sees and what it does not. My being exists when there is much to do and when I am in a waiting season; when the lists are long and labourers are few; and when it seems that my doing just isn’t enough. I concluded that while being is often associated with doing, there is danger in the two being inextricably connected.

In Matthew 25:34-40, Jesus references what it means to care for the least of these and draws a parallel to caring for him. As our relationships become more Jesus-centred, this focus determines how we love, extend grace, forgive, and exist in community. In caring for the least of these, we put aside our individualistic focus and look to the collective betterment, even when that collective may differ from us.