Acts 17:16-21
English
Standard Version (ESV)
16 Now while Paul was waiting for them at
Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of
idols. 17 So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the
devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be
there. 18 Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also
conversed with him. And some said, “What does this babbler wish to say?” Others
said, “He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities”—because he was
preaching Jesus and the resurrection. 19 And they took him and
brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is
that you are presenting? 20 For you bring some strange things
to our ears. We wish to know therefore what these things mean.” 21 Now
all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in
nothing except telling or hearing something new.
I used to be a
teacher of students with severe, multiple disabilities. Often times my students could not verbally
communicate wants and needs to others.
My job was to come in and help them learn the skill of appropriate
communication. I worked with a variety
of different methods in order to help them find the one that worked for
them. However, in the beginning there
could be some very big struggles, maybe some biting, kicking, screaming, hitting,
and tantrums. I would always tell those
who were working with them, paraprofessionals and other teachers, “we need to
put ourselves in their shoes, view the world from their eyes, in order to
understand what they are trying to tell us.”
Just think about it, how would you feel if you could not talk, or even
move, walk, or run, in order let others know how you felt? I know I might bite, scream, kick or whatever
else I might need to do to let them know what I needed or wanted.
As Paul waited for his team in Athen, he put his feet in the
shoes of the people of Athens and viewed the world from their eyes. He was observant as to what the people of
this region were all about. He saw what
they valued by looking at their many idols, he listened as they spoke and he
took into account the questions they were asking. By doing this, he found out ways to address
the crowd so they would listen to him and not just shut him down. Because he was willing to listen to the
people, he was able to show them the true way.
Of course, some rejected him but others believed.
How often do we try to understand people, their values,
their thoughts, or their motives? Often
times we are quick to judge but have taken no time to try to put ourselves in
the other person’s shoes. Until we take
the time to really get to know people and their struggles, it will be hard to
be a good witness to them. Until we try
to understand their struggles we will have no way to help them through them.
As you seek Him today, take a look around you and try to put
yourself into the shoes of an unbeliever that you may know. What is it that causes them to not
believe? What is it that they hold dear
to their hearts? Ask the Lord to help
you view the world in their eyes in order for you to allow them to see the
world through the eyes of Christ. Seek
Him and know that He knows and understand you.
Seeking Him with all my heart,
Sheila
No comments:
Post a Comment