I don't know about you, but there have been times when it felt like my life had no margins. I would work till I dropped. I would fill up the plate and eat every bite. I'd find one way was hard, but I'd go do it anyway. I would take advantage of others in ways that were fair or within the rules, but just weren't right. Mostly this came from my own fear or greed--I might miss out or not have enough.
In these passages we see God directing his people to not just act justly, but to act generously with deep compassion for their kinsmen. He is a God of abundance--He never has lack. He is directing us to believe we are heirs to the same abundance and act with the same generosity. The margins in our lives become the space where He cares for the needy.
Besides, it takes so much more energy to gather in the last little bits and it really isn't worth it. In traffic analysis, I can tell you that it's easy to figure out the timings for an intersection that has plenty of extra capacity--it might take half an hour or so. When the intersection gets close to capacity, squeezing out that last 5% can take hours of adjusting the analysis. In the same way, managing that last 5% of our time, energy and resources seems to take herculean effort. Did God mean for us to fill every minute of our days with work and entertainment?
As I write this, my sweet Katie has been laying on my chest like a cat sitting on the keyboard. On most Saturday mornings, the TV would have been on and she would have been entranced by it. Instead, in the quiet space of a less occupied morning, she came to pour out her heart of love for me and in turn receive the snuggle time she needs so badly too. (And yes, I did put the computer down.)
She's calling again, so I need to go. Have a great day...
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