Both/And

I believe we live in a dualistic society.  We love to put things into categories, we love our labels.  We look at people as winners or losers, rich or poor, privileged or those to have pity on.  I believe that much of our thinking is either/or thinking.  Someone is either in this category, or they are in that one.  Someone is either a winner, or they are a loser.  I believe that the gospel message pulls us away from this type of polarized thinking however.  I believe that the gospel message is a both/and message instead of an either/or message.  All is taken into account, all is included.  God is willing to accept all of us, even the broken parts of us.

I believe that both/and thinking frees us in ways that either/or thinking cannot.  If my primary mode is either/or, I will be seeking to divide, to put things into this category or that.  I will not be able to take things as they are, I will automatically be judging them and evaluating them from the start.  If on the other hand my mode is both/and, I'm more able and willing to accept you for who you are, and also to accept all that you have to offer.  Both/and thinking accepts people and things for what they are, and then invites them to share themselves.  It is a much more inclusive, a much more expansive way of thinking.  I believe that both/and thinking is more about saying "yes" than "no" or "maybe."

Imagine with me for a moment.  What if we saw the day as gift, as inclusive, as what we can add to it and what it can add to us, as able to expand our understanding, as increasing our ability to love and receive love.  I believe this type of thinking and seeing is grace, and also is the affect that grace has on our lives.  Only God can bring about this in our lives, and my openness and vulnerability with him can be a foundation on which a both/and attitude is built.