No Ordinary People

It may be possible for each of us to think too much of his own potential glory hereafter; it is hardly possible for him to think too often or too deeply about that of his neighbour. The load, or weight, or burden, of my neighbour's glory should be laid daily on my back, a load so heavy that only humility can carry it, and the backs of the proud will be broken. It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you may talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and corruption such as you now meet if at all only in a nightmare.All day long we are in some degree helping each other to one or the other of these destinations. It is in light of these overwhelming possibilities it is with awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations--these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit--immortal horrors or everlasting splendours. This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of the kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously--no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption. And our charity must be real and costly love, with deep feeling for the sins in spite of which we love the sinners--no mere tolerance, or indulgence which parodies love as flippancy parodies merriment. Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses. If he is your Christian neighbour, he is holy in almost the same way, for in him also Christ vere latitat, the glorifier and the glorified, Glory Himself, is truly hidden."C.S. Lewis - The Weight of Glory


As I grow older, I notice that my friendships are deepening. More and more of my conversations with friends both old and new quickly bypass superficiality for more meaningful fare. We seem to be asking each other how we are really doing rather than how our day is going.

I'm shaken to think about how many of these rich friendships are so unexpected. A smoother-skinned, shallower me might have bypassed some of these relationships by labeling someone "too rich" or "too skinny" or "too..." whatever. I am ashamed to realize how many wonderful friendships I initially missed out on because I judged another person too quickly by whatever my lame standards were at the time.

Sometimes my judgmentalism was disguised as "protecting myself" but it was judgment all the same. I am working towards becoming discerning rather than judgmental. My goal is to choose a friend by their character rather than their wardrobe.

In the middle of this kinder, gentler journey of mine, I am reminded that this is one goal that truly matters. Because, as C.S. Lewis wrote, none of us are mere mortals. Some day when we leave this planet earth, we will still exist. Forever. The question is in what capacity will we exist - will we be an "immortal horror or an everlasting splendour."

Whenever I allow my life to touch another's, I have the potential to steer someone towards their eternal destination. And, as I consider eternity in my friendships, I live my own life differently. Seeing people in this everlasting light awakens me to the potential in others, as well as in myself.

My mind can barely grasp this quote but it is imperative that I not only understand but remember: "It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you may talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and corruption such as you now meet if at all only in a nightmare."

There are no ordinary people.
Heavenly Father,
Please help me invest my life and my time in what truly matters. Make me more and more aware that people, not things, are eternal.
Thank you for loving us so much that You made us to last forever. Thank you for inviting us to live the rest of forever with You.
In Jesus' name,
Amen