We must meet heart to heart before we’re willing to wash someone’s feet. May God heal our hearts.

“After that, he poured water into a basin and began

 to wash his disciples’ feet,” John 13:5 NIV

It’s tough to be a pastor now. The pandemic is now followed by the destruction of many cities across America – Godly leaders face a gargantuan challenge: How to unite believers who are split in almost every way possible.

Friends have views totally contrary to my thinking. We have lovers of our President as well as staunch foes of everything he does. We have strong and often divergent views on every news story we hear.

George Floyd’s murder strongly divides us. Legitimate protesters now share the streets with people who use his name to set fires to buildings and cars and steal the contents of the stores they loot and destroy… it’s all gotten extremely confusing.

And we always take sides. Facebook and social media become battle fields that produces no winners… only casualties. We are all on a continuum somewhere between ‘concerned’ to absolute panic-stricken.

I don’t want to fight anymore. I don’t want to win my argument. I have quit looking for ‘conclusive proof’ to any upheaval around me. We’ve been lied to, misinformed, shamed, tricked and left with insufficient information and a massive emotional headache and heart ache.

We are a microcosm of the original disciples that surrounded Jesus. We have an impetuous man who speaks without thinking. There are two brothers who want to call down fire from heaven of those who disagree with them

There is a true skeptic who doubts that anything good could ever come out of the situation and a doubter who refused to believe easily. There is a tax collector, part of the system that enslaved people on behalf of a corrupt government.

And let’s not forget the revolutionary member of the group whose nickname was “the Zealot’. He’ll pick a fight with anyone. And how can we forget the one who betrayed Jesus.

All but one of these was destined for greatness. Jesus was about to leave the spiritual world in their hands. None of them was ready. But Jesus took off his robe, grabbed a pan of water and washed their feet.

Today I feel I have a bit of the weaknesses of all 12 of them in me. But I don’t have the feeling of brotherhood they shared as Jesus washed their feet.

As God’s family we are being pressured to take sides, argue stridently for our piece of the uproar, and see brothers as enemies.

And I wonder – would you wash my feet?