Getting Along

January 14, 2015 (Wednesday)
Famous quotation by Rodney King: “People, I just want to say, can we all get along? Can we get along?”
Evidently not. Jesus predicted “wars and rumors of wars” until the end of time. Looks like He was right.
The Bible says the first couple had two sons, and one of them killed the other. That’s how long this has been a problem for human beings.
A Charlie Brown cartoon shows Charlie Brown telling Lucy, “With you, it’s just I-I-I all the time.” And Lucy replies, “I?”
When Lyndon Johnson was leader of the Senate, his favorite quotation was from the Bible: “Come now, let us reason together.” He was famous for being able to get two sides to find points of agreement. He discovered, however, that as president it was not as easy to do that, and finally he refused to run again because of his inability to bring opposing sides together.
One of Dale Carnegie’s suggestions on how to solve a disagreement was to “try honestly to see things from the other person’s point of view.”
The shots that rang out in Dallas November 22, 1963, were the true “shots heard around the world.” They boldly declared, “My problems will be solved by getting rid of you.” That philosophy has become stronger with the passing of each year. An editorial cartoonist pictures old 2014 as a wild west cowboy shooting at the little 2015 baby, who is running for his life. It captures a picture of the big problem of our time.
Perhaps we can make a beginning toward world peace by taking steps to make peace in our own little personal world. “A journey of a thousand miles begins with one small step.” Is there someone you need to forgive? Is there someone whose forgiveness you need to seek? “Can we get along?”
Our supreme model of the best life that can be lived is Jesus as he prays for those nailing Him to the Cross: “Father, forgive them..”