Despite the fact that I am running on a grand total of 40 MINUTES of sleep. I fell asleep at 6:20 this morning. This was not due to my usual stay-up-till-ridiculous-hours-of-the-night excuse. This one was legitimate. My roommate Lane was coming down with something bad all night (shout out to Lanebo by the way, you can find him and his blog at http://firstflight-lane.blogspot.com/ ). He also had a lot of work to get done, so I stayed up with him, giving him tea and medicine, and just generally trying to support him. In short, I was fulfilling my sworn obligations as a Bro. It's what we do. He's got my back, and I have his, and if it means getting no sleep and buying orange juice at 10 in the morning... it's what I do.
Now, before anyone gets the wrong idea, I'm not complaining about what I did last night. I was more than happy to support a brother in his time of need. He would have done the same for me, and he supports me in other ways all the time. As brothers, it's an unwritten creed between us. Which brings me to the concept of "brotherhood." Now, granted, my perception of the word is a bit colored right now by a certain game, where the concept of a "brotherhood" is a band of highly trained assassins ready to strike any target at my signal... But I digress.
Being in a brotherhood carries special meaning. There are some rules, of course, but mostly it's just a strong bond between a group of men, who all care about each other and support each other. I have my group of "Bros" that I hold in higher esteem than others, for no other reason than because they are my Bros.
You know who else was a sweet group of Bros? Jesus and his disciples.
Now before you start getting all "Now, wait just one minute!..." on me, think about it. This group of guys went everywhere and did everything together. Jesus didn't just teach these men... he was a friend to them, and they to him. Jesus was very much human, and the disciples fulfilled the roles of friendship his humanity required. Not to mention that it wasn't just work for them. Jesus' first miracle, the water into wine, takes place at a wedding party! Jesus and his disciples were guests, there to enjoy the celebration and friendship. They were having fun! This was a group of guys, bound together by faith and friendship. They were Bros.
Now, if you're wondering what the point of this is, let me get down to it: What I did for Lane, I did without complaint because he's my brother. I wouldn't have made that sacrifice for just anyone...
OR WOULD I??
In Matthew 25, Jesus tells the parable of the sheep and the goats. He grants the sheep entrance to the Kingdom, because they cared for him in all of his sufferings. Of course, they had never seen him suffering, and are confused. Jesus gives the following answer:
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'"
Yeah... Jesus basically told his disciples, "Look out there. Anyone and everyone you see... that's a brother or sister to you. Treat them the same way as you would treat me if I was in need. That's what I'm all about."
Now, let me be clear: I am NOT inviting everyone I know to come knocking on my door first anytime they need something... I value sleep, I really do. But my prayer is this: that I open my eyes to see that "Brotherhood"is something that I share with everyone. My prayer is that I would be willing to make the same sacrifices I made for Lane for anyone who needed it of me. That's what living faith is all about.
So let me ask... who's part of your brotherhood?
Grace and Peace be yours in abundance,
The Wayfaring Stranger
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