Friday's Thoughts

What brings us down? What makes us less than we can be or should become? Is there original sin? Is it a biblical idea without foundation or does it have merit?

I'm not sure it is something within us because we are human but I have thought there are ways we fail to live up to the potential that is in us. I have thought two of the ways we do that are so opposite that they seem opposed. I'm guessing they are more related than we realize.

The most prevalent problem is the result of the fact that we think so little of ourselves that we cannot imagine grasping the bigger potential we possess. We constantly let people put us down and when they are not putting us down we put ourselves down. We fail to act when we should and we run ourselves into the point that we cannot rise above it. We become listless losers who have not cause; no concern; and no passion for life. We suffer from sloth or laziness. We settle for less and accept little of what's coming to us. There becomes no hope for us and no future for us.

The more obvious problem we have is that we come to conclude too much about ourselves and we think we have all the answers to all the questions even before the questions are asked. We imagine we can do it all and all we do is what we are able to do. We run around trying to figure everything out assuming we are the only ones doing the figuring. We see little beyond ourselves and glory in our independence and in our single-mindedness.

Biblical writers call that sin. Thinking too small leads to the sin of sloth and thinking too highly of ourselves leads to the sin of pride. Either way we are settling for less. There is more to us than we often give ourselves credit and there is more that we can do if we tap into the power that is beyond us.

Second Isaiah warned his people that the end of the Exile was coming and they needed to begin to act like they believed it.

They seemed to enjoy their bad luck and they seemed to have trouble accepting the idea that the news was better and might be good.

Do you believe there is something wrong with us and that it comes from the idea that we think too little of ourselves or we think too much?

How do you deal with the idea of original sin?

If you have thoughts on this write me at charlesschuster@fcfumc.net. If you are willing to have others read your comments click on the box below.

I look forward to hearing from you.


Charles Schuster