Beyond the politics, there’s some humanity to see …

Let’s talk about the “Occupy Wall Street” activity for a moment … but without any of the politics.

First, it should be easy for us to agree there’s some degree of truth to the stereotyping happening. Some conservatives immediately and only see the OWSer’s as lazy socialists who want their needs delivered by the government. Some of the OWS’ers have said that’s something would they like.

Some of the OWSer’s see upper middle class and upper class people as out-of-touch with the many who work just as hard but struggle to have life’s most basic necessities. And there’s some truth to what they say.

So what can we take from this?

Beyond the politics, — beyond any arguments or hypocrisy from either side — the reality is that among the OWSer’s are some people who have been hurting and struggling for so long they are losing hope, if they have any left. They love their country, they don’t support socialism, but they also don’t have any answers. For themselves or for the woes of the country. They are weary, ignored and forgotten.

These people are the ones many who call themselves both conservative and Christian often don’t have the slightest understanding of. They stereotype them and lump them with the “rabble rousers.” And they are wrong for doing so.

America is seeing some hard times today, but the struggles our country is facing is only a part of a bigger economic and social downturn going on in many counties. The world is seeing hard times.

When we throw a cover of politics on a news story, we lose the humanity of the people behind the headlines. Whole families are experiencing a despair they’ve never known. These realities should do more than pull at the heart strings of genuine Christians, it should elicit a Christlike response of caring and serving from among us.

That doesn’t happen when we can’t even fathom what these people are going through. When we measure hard times by how long the cable connection or internet will be out-of-service, and only look at people through their — and our — politics, then we’ll never see those who are hurting and struggling through no fault of their own.

Jesus Christ was not a conservative Republican. He wasn’t American. He wasn’t liberal, socialist, or a Democrat. He was and is God, and He calls us to see people rather than political parties, to see people as He sees them, to respond to them as He would, and to connect them to Him.

There’s nothing wrong with being politically active as a good citizen. There’s everything wrong with letting your politics influence your faith rather than your faith directing anything having to do with politics.

Jesus had very little to say about politics, a great deal to say about loving and serving God and others. Too often, we have a great deal to say about politics, and very little to say about loving and serving God and others.

For that, we need to repent. Then we need to take up our own crosses, and follow Jesus.

Scotty