Day 87 - The Importance of Loving Others

One of my devotionals from several weeks ago came back to mind as I pondered what to write about today.  It was entitled "The Importance of Loving Others," and it begins with the following introduction: "recently a twelve-year-old boy in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, hung himself.  Why?  Because the next day was his first day at a new school, he was overweight, and he dreaded being taunted by other children."  For me, this is a truly sad commentary on society and this young man's experience.  It is heart-breaking for several reasons: people can be so cruel in dealing with people who are different, society/the media tends to put pressure on people to look/be a certain way and there are painful consequences for those who don't fit, and he didn't have a strong enough sense of self or support system to get beyond the teasing.  I know I endured a good bit of teasing for the first... 18 years of my life, and it was hard on me.  There were definitely moments when I contemplated doing what the young man did, but I'm thankful that there was always someone who I knew loved me, even if it just felt like 1 person.  But unfortunately there are too many people who don't even feel like there's 1 person who they can say honestly cares whether they live or die.
The devotional then goes on to talk about the disciples asking about the blind man in John 9, saying, "was it a result of his own sins or those of his parents?"  The author of the devotional makes a good point in saying, "they weren't concerned that the man needed help or that he'd spent his life in total darkness.  No, they started discussing his shortcomings - right in front of him.  It's easier to label people than love them."  All too often, people get caught up in labeling others and deciding, based on stereotypes and generalizations, that a person is less than deserving of their love and attention, or even just their respect as a fellow human being.  It's been said that if you don't love people, you can't love God, but many people spend everyday acting as if they can't stand most of the people that they come into contact with, including themselves. 
It's not enough to say, "I love everyone."  Your actions, your politics, your spending habits, your social circles, and your life should show it.  I don't care what your doctrine tells you - nowhere does the God I serve tell you to hate, judge, stereotype, critique, or otherwise disrespect another human being for any reason.  Your job is to love.  God's job is to fix (if God deems it necessary - some things that people want to fix are not even concerns to God).