“The Gracious Act” By Melanie Rigney (@melanierigney)

Tuesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

For you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that for your sake he became poor although he was rich so that by his poverty you might become rich. (2 Corinthians 8:9)

Praise the Lord, my soul! (Psalm 146:1b)

“For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same?” (Matthew 5:46-47)

Piety

Lord, help me to reflect You and Your love to Your people always and in all ways.

Study

It’s not just children who learn from what they see.

Steve, the best boss I ever had, died about this time a year ago. He had replaced someone, now long dead, who thought the best way to run a newsroom was to pit people against each other so that we’d all always be on edge and competitive. Steve expected excellence too, but he fostered it in a different way. He said a hearty hello whether you came in early or late. He always asked how your vacation was, and how things went at your dental appointment the day before. He let out a big “BAM!” anytime someone scored a big interview or wrote a stellar headline. He was the first true example of servant leadership I ever saw. I wanted to be like Steve. I would have taken a bullet for him, and in some ways, I did on more than one occasion.

Years later, I worked only incidentally with a federal government executive. He lives 700 miles away and was my boss’s-boss’s-boss’s-boss. I doubt he remembers me or my name. But the handful of times I saw him, his face broke into a smile the second he encountered anyone in the hall or a meeting room, regardless of whether the person’s latest rating was outstanding or he or she was on a personal improvement plan. He’d rush over to shake your hand and ask how you were doing. And in those few seconds together, you felt valued by him… and the organization. Small wonder he’s continued to advance, though I think he’d be doing the same thing regardless of his position. I learned the value of a smile and of acknowledgment from him.

I don’t know anything about the interior faith life of either of these men. But I do know that if I interact in a Christlike way with people I find difficult to love, they are among the examples Jesus put in my life to learn from.

Action

Write an email or card of thanks to someone who has helped you love the seemingly unlovable.