Strangers

Strangers

So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family.

THE SEMESTER I STUDIED ABROAD in England, I spent my spring break in Austria. One of my friends had a friend in Vienna, and she agreed to show us around. After a flight to Linz, a train ride to Vienna, and a mix-up about where we were staying that led to an exhausting evening bumping our luggage around the streets of Vienna, we settled in for the week.

Once there, we had a wonderful visit. We went to the opera, sat in the cheap seats, and marveled at the performance. We visited St. Stephen’s Cathedral, went to an art museum, and spent an afternoon at a Kandinsky art exhibition. We did a bit of shopping, ate schnitzel, and spent a day exploring Schloss Schönbrunn, the biggest castle in Austria.

But even with friends at my side, I remember feeling a bit lost. Though many people spoke English and no one was unkind, I wished desperately that I knew even the tiniest fraction of German. My high school Spanish and college French were of no use to me there. By the time we returned to England, it felt like a sweet relief to be understood by those around me.

The experience gave me a small sense of what it must feel like when others move to my community, knowing no one, perhaps struggling to feel understood. It’s isolating and lonely. Now, when I encounter folks who are new to my area, I try to be welcoming, remembering that lonely isolation of being in an unfamiliar place.

As citizens of heaven, we ourselves are strangers in a foreign land—yet while we are here, we must be united in our love. When we recognize that those around us are part of our family—regardless of background or culture—we honor the grace and mercy extended to us through Christ’s sacrifice. Let’s honor the spirit of that promise by treating each person we meet with love and respect.

Lord, thank you that we are family, not strangers, to you. Help us to treat others in the same way you’ve treated us. Amen.

-Kristin

One Good Step: Who can you befriend that may feel lonely or out of place?