God Thinks We Could Not Be One Bit Better!
On Sunday, I told the story of a young man named Willy who lived in Los Angeles. He was a gang member who liked to brag about his exploits. He was befriended by a priest named Father Gregory Boyle, who knew all about his life in the gangs. One day around 8 p.m., Willy paid Fr. Greg a visit and asked for $20 because he was hungry. Fr. Greg didn’t have $20 but told Willy he would drive him to a local grocery store where there was an ATM and get him some money. Fr. Greg didn’t want to take any chances that the 2 of them might run into any rival gang members in the parking lot or in the store, so he told Willy to wait in the car. About 10 yards away, Fr. Greg heard Willy call out to him. He wanted the keys to the car so he could listen to the radio. Fr. Greg said no way and invited Willy to pray instead. When he got back to the car, he found that something had changed. Willy was quiet, reflective, humble; and Fr. Greg couldn’t help but notice a sense of peace. He looked at Willy and said, “You prayed, didn’t you?” Willy responded without looking at Fr. Greg: “Yeah, I did.” Fr. Greg asked Willy a simple but very profound question: “How does God see you?” Willy replied: “God thinks I’m firme.” Fr. Greg translates that to mean: “[God thinks I] could not be one bit better.”
I read this story last week in Fr. Greg’s book, Tattoos on the Heart, in which he tells the story of his ministry to gang members in L.A. and people affected by the gangs. This theme that God thinks people could not be one bit better seems to be the heart of his message…and it changed the lives of people who heard it. I wondered (out loud) on Sunday if this might be the message we all need to let “marinate” in our hearts: that God thinks we could not be one bit better. Imagine how we might live differently if we truly believed that about ourselves and everyone else!
Have a great week, and I hope to see you on Sunday!
Kahu Alan Akana
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