Greetings: Honestly friends, I have struggled with writing my thoughts and experiences regarding right and wrong for well over a week. I continue to search for insights as I view topics on YouTube, books and personal conversations and I still feel at a loss to share my thoughts. Nevertheless, I will try. I have truly tried to look beyond just my personal experiences with this subject of right and wrong, it is with much anguish I have come to this conclusion that right and wrong is not as simple as black and white or concrete and abstract thinking and processing. Each of us develops a system within ourselves that defines our moral character, our sense of right and wrong. Our skill sets are connected to a degree with our social, economic and developmental spaces we occupy in this world. People who live on strict low incomes versus people who have an endless supply of finances will grossly differ on what is a priority, need versus wants. Let me be clear neither group should be ashamed of their place on the financial spectrum, each person is just in different circumstances. From a personal perspective, I struggled with my own sense of moral character code because it differed from that of my parents. Not that I felt mine were right and theirs was wrong, they were/are just different. There can be several reasons why they can differ: time changes things “generational”; new data and new information; lack of knowledge or exposure…I am sure there’s other reasons as well, these were just the ones that rang true for me. I have labor many years thinking there must be something wrong with me because my moral compass was not an exact copy of my parents. The answer, simple when I allowed myself to see that I am not a clone of my parents, I contain traits and characteristics from both my mom and dad; and that my life experiences are all my own and they will help to mold and develop my ideas of the world and what is right and wrong for me. Embracing our own individuality as a created being from our parents and ultimately from God, we are so incredibly unique that even if you’re an identical twin you are still different and uniquely one of a kind. I also believe and embrace the idea that as we grow and expand our understanding of the world our moral compass can and should constantly be making adjustments to more fully live into the purpose of who God has called us to be. A valuable lesson I’ve learned is this, I do not have to agree with all or any of your “right and wrong” list in order to love you. God calls us to love one another, I am a work in progress just like you. I hope the videos I have included are helpful as well as the song choices. I am not perfect, I’m just trying to do the best I can each day with the knowledge I have at the moment and I seek to learn new things each and every day. We all owe it to ourselves to be as authentic as possible while respecting others at the same time. We all have more in common than we realize, let’s capitalize on those things and the things we differ on will seem less frightening. We are all human-beings, requiring food, water, shelter, clothing and air to breathe…we all deserve respect and common decency. May we all find the answers we are seeking and maturity to accept the answers and compassion with everyone we meet. May God bless you and keep you forevermore. Amen.
Romans 3:19-26 “Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin. But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.”
Psalm 106:6-15 “We have sinned, even as our ancestors did; we have done wrong and acted wickedly. When our ancestors were in Egypt, they gave no thought to your miracles; they did not remember your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea. Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, to make his mighty power known. He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up; he led them through the depths as through a desert. He saved them from the hand of the foe; from the hand of the enemy he redeemed them. The waters covered their adversaries; not one of them survived. Then they believed his promises and sang his praise. But they soon forgot what he had done and did not wait for his plan to unfold. In the desert they gave in to their craving; in the wilderness they put God to the test. So he gave them what they asked for, but sent a wasting disease among them.”
C.S.Lewis quote:
“These, then, are the two points I wanted to make. First, that human beings, all over the earth, have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way, and cannot really get rid of it. Secondly, that they do not in fact behave in that way. They know the Law of Nature; they break it. These two facts are the foundation of all clear thinking about ourselves and the universe we live in” (p. 8)…of Mere Christianity.
~Blessings and Peace~
HOPE SEEKER 