VIEWPOINT
We all inflict tiny cuts on each other
BY RORY HERMANN Pastor, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church and School Gulf Breeze

One summer during my break from the university I worked at a tomato greenhouse owned by my father's best friend from high school. One of my primary tasks was to assist in the construction of new greenhouses. After I assisted putting up the frame I worked with a glazier who placed sheets of glass in the roof and walls of the greenhouse. I carried three or four sheets of 18 inch square glass up a ladder.

I carried the glass bare-handed because it proved too slick for gloves. This resulted in innumerable small cuts on my fingers and palms, cuts which bled profusely. Fortunately, they hurt briefly and healed quickly. If you have difficulty empathizing with me, just imagine getting hundreds of little paper cuts.

These cuts remind me of the many tiny cuts we inflict on each other, either through carelessness, well-intentioned criticism, malice, or revenge. During Jesus' Sermon on the Mount he told his listeners, "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you... (Matthew 5:44)." Formerly I thought Jesus referred to "big" enemies - enemies of the country or people seriously opposed to us. While this is true, Jesus also refers to the "little" enemies, the people who inflict "glass cuts."

These people need our love, prayer and forgiveness too.

Praying for our enemies - the people who inflict "glass cuts" - accomplishes two things. It may open our eyes to other people's needs and open us to wellintentioned criticism. Prayer may help us develop a thicker skin and help us see things more clearly.

Starting this New Year, let us resolve to stop inflicting cuts on each other and to respond better to the ones we receive. Christ died for all our cuts!