Presence

Lord, thank you for being my companion on life’s journey, each day, and in each moment, including this one. Help me to tune in to your presence now…

Scripture

Proverbs 23:9

⁹Do not speak in the hearing of a fool, who will only despise the wisdom of your words.

Reflection

In today’s polarised world, how much time do we waste trying to change the minds of those who are unwilling to listen to a differing political opinion, who stubbornly reject another perspective, who have such a distorted view of the social and economic reality which we know that their worldview bears no resemblance to ours? Yet time and time and time again, we work ourselves into a self-righteous lather trying to get them to see what we call sense, to change their minds so that they agree with our point of view. On the flip side, we, too, often cocoon in an echo chamber where the opinions we read and hear mirror our own. Convinced we are right, we close ourselves off to arguments that contradict what we believe. We become another person’s fool. How much better the world would be if we were to listen with open hearts and minds, if we were to verify the truth of what we read before we share it, if we were to agree to disagree, embracing the political spectrum rather than letting it divide us.

Closing Prayer

Dear God, place in my path this day someone whose ideologies differ from mine. Give me the grace to recognise their beliefs and respect their truth. Help me live my faith.  Amen.