Yeah, that's about the only way I can describe being in Taos. I expect everyone I meet to be a "tree huggin’, peace lovin’, pot smokin’, porn watchin’ lazyass hippy" like Todd Snider. Look up those lyrics if you're confused.
Okay so I was wrong. I have seen plenty of "Bush-Cheney" and even a couple of NRA stickers on the back of a few vehicles. SO what's my philosophy for today going to be? Yeah even me, who likes to pretend like she doesn't judge people before she meets them, does. Don't try to pretend like you don't, because you've done it. We all have. So we're all wrong, right? We're all selfish, disgusting beings who only care about themselves and their personal beliefs. No one else really matters right? We're pigs? Yeah, essentially.
All I can really say that's worth anything is you never know what someone's going through (leave my improper grammar alone). Of course it's easy to look at the girl driving Daddy's last-month Lexis or the guy hunched over the garbage-can fire like they're somehow lesser people but what's awesome is they're out of the exact same mold as us. And, what's even more amazing is that God loves them just as much as he loves me. And you. We're all the same. Because, to be quite honest, my refusal to love those people like I do my family is every bit as shameful as any distance they may have from the freedom of Jesus Christ...if there's any distance at all! How am I to judge them without a real conversation?
For a lot of us, it's hard to love certain "types" of people because their lifestyles or beliefs may be different from our own. However, when we deny the love that God has welled within our hearts, we won't know how it feels to break through those boundaries and love that "different" person who may be struggling. "Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor." Romans 12: 9-11 shows us competitive ones what it means to truly love.
Genuine. Don't just look like you're loving your brother. Mean it. Humans have a fake-dar so you're not fooling anyone. If that means asking God to show you how to love someone, that's what it takes. Yeah, sometimes it is that hard to show someone you love them, but we need help with everything. Just ask.
Yes, I'm a religious person, but I know not all of you are. Okay, so how does this apply? Every human is equipped with the capacity to love. If you fill your heart with love, everything just falls in place. Like I said, it's hard. It's really hard to just be loving sometimes but even showing that different person a little bit of respect exhibits a loving heart rather than someone who's completely hardened.
How can I train to be a killer and preach this life of love? That, in my opinion, takes a thorough explanation. Just stick around, that should be an interesting discussion.
