Be Sweet to the People
Recently I lost the man in my life that looked the most like Jesus of anyone I've ever known. Lucky for me, he was my dad. I get it. Not everyone has the privilege of their dad and hero being one and the same. For that privilege, I am immensely grateful!
When someone dear to us dies, we all attempt to "bottle" that person's traits, nuances, and characteristics. Just a glance into that bottle would have the potential to bring back all the things that we grew to love, appreciate, and admire about that loved one. Perhaps we think saving those memoirs in a container would make them easy to revisit during our rough days in the future.
Although the bottle of memories I have of my dad is chocked full, some things will not stay contained. His words, his words leak! Like honey on the side of the honey jar, they leave a residual. His words are so sticky! The words "be sweet to the people" were his signature. If you knew my dad for any length of time, you'd remember his resonating and rhythmic voice as he spoke his goodbyes. "Be sweet to the people," he'd say in a medium to high-pitched baritone. Then he would smile as if he knew you'd comply one hundred percent.
"Be sweet to the people."
Now there's a novel idea that just might work in today's deteriorating world. What if we embraced the concept of songwriters Allen and Curt, who wrote the song for Glen Campbell?
You've got to try a little kindness
Yes, show a little kindness
Just shine your light for everyone to see
And if you try a little kindness
Then you'll overlook the blindness
Of narrow-minded people on the narrow-minded streets
Better yet, the New Testament writer Paul said,
"Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you." - Ephesians 4:32
Be the good news! The Gospel is the good news, and it costs us nothing to give away because an unlimited supply has been paid for by someone else.
We are forgiven of our own sins; the least we can do is be kind and forgiving to others. It's literally what Jesus would do.
As tears sting my eyes and I continue to grieve his death, I'm grateful for the life and legacy of my dad. Like him, I've decided to be a difference-maker. Please join me. In our world, people are under unbearable loads and unparelled pressures. Let's do something simple, fresh, and yet supernaturally powerful! Let's "Be sweet to the people."