Parish Theme- February

On the Road Again…This month’s Journey in Jesus has a little different perspective. As we study the well-known story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37) we aren’t looking at getting on the road again with Jesus, or even staying on the road with Jesus, rather we’re looking at God’s call on our lives to go “off-roading” with Him, as we love and serve our neighbors.

Some of you may be very comfortable with the idea of hopping into your favorite 4-wheel drive vehicle and enjoying some off-the-beaten-path moments in God’s great and exciting terrain. Most of you, however, probably prefer to stick to your comfortable and predictable driving routes and routines. So it is with God’s call to compassion and really loving our neighbor.

Consider the following good Samaritan opportunities of our current day:

How do you handle the unexpected visitor or “needy” person who pops into your day? How do you handle the peddler standing on the roadside? How do you handle those inconvenient moments in which someone—somewhere is crying out for your help?

Maybe it depends on how our day is going, maybe it depends on what we have “up-ahead” on our schedule, or maybe it depends on what we perceive to be “our job,” but if we’re really honest, we don’t usually answer these “off-roading” opportunities with much enthusiasm. Yet God’s call to love and serve with compassion often demands that we set aside our busy schedules and our “important” tasks in order to “love our neighbors as ourselves.”

This month, let’s be on the lookout for what God would have us learn about the good Samaritan, the priest and the Levite. Let’s be on the lookout for God’s compassionate “off-roading” on our behalf, and finally, let’s be on the lookout for moments when God would have us love others on His behalf. The road may be challenging, pricey and even heartbreaking at times, but it is always filled with God’s grace and God’s promise. For indeed, He is with us always, until the very end of the age. (Matt. 28)