He’s eight years old, and he already has a passion. He’s a huge soccer fan, and he practices with teams (plural) five times a week. Often stepping outside his own team for the challenge. He practices at home on his own without anyone telling him to do so.
Ward has enjoyed soccer for years. His parents patiently drive him to practices, games, and cheer for him on the sidelines. Other eight-year-olds might question why any boy that age would want to commit so much time to a sport. Most days of the week, with games on the weekend. What this shows is determination, commitment, and character. Ward is disciplined in his pursuit of becoming a better soccer player.
Then there’s four-year-old Kolly.
She’s just beginning to play the beautiful game, but to her, right now, it isn’t all that beautiful. Most kids her age haven’t fully conceptualized the idea of soccer. She’s watched her cousins play, and because she loves them, she decided to do the same.
Being on a field with kids running all around is different from sitting on the sidelines waving to her cousins. At one point during her last game, she stood between two fields, as if deciding which team was hers.
In life, we all fall between these two extremes. The ones who get out there, try their hardest, and keep going until they’ve accomplished their goal, and the ones who aren’t sure what they really want to do and are more hesitant about their own participation.
Jesus surrounded Himself with people who were different, not part of the esteemed religious leaders. The Pharisees and scribes complained about the time He spent with sinners–people they looked down upon. Tax collectors, social outcasts, marginalized individuals, the sick, the vulnerable, the poor, and the unclean. He saw every person as worthy of His love and sacrifice. No matter who they were, what they did, or how much they were worth. He valued every person because every person ever born was created in the image of God.
When a religious leader asked Jesus what the greatest commandment was, “Jesus replied, ‘The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The LORD our God is the one and only LORD. And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength’. The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.” Mark 12:29-31.
What was important to Jesus was loving God with all that you are, and loving your neighbor as you love yourself. Our neighbors are any people we come across in life, not just those next door. We’re to treat everyone with kindness and compassion, treating them just as we’d like to be treated. Whether they’re really great people or not so great. It is never up to us to judge another’s value.
Ward and Kolly are at two ends of the soccer continuum. Age, ability, and desire play a part in how well they do. Both have value because each has shown up to make an effort.
We’re all “playing”, so to speak, in the game of life. Some folks are working hard, doing their best, trying to get ahead. Others don’t know what they want, don’t feel as driven, maybe even feeling a little lost. But everyone has been made in the image of God and is worthy of our respect, our compassion, and our kindness.
No matter who they are or what they do.
Can you imagine what the world would look like if we actually treated everyone we met with respect and kindness?
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