“She may have had a whole lovely garden spread out at her feet, but in her heart, she still thought of herself as a weed - unlovely, uncultivated, unwelcome even in her own backyard. Everything in the world has its two faces, however. Weeds sometimes blossom into artful flowers. Beauty walks hand in hand with ugliness, sickness with health, and life tiptoes around in the horned shadow of death. The trick is to recognize which is which and to recognize what you’re dealing with at the time. At any given moment, you can tip the balance just a little, one way or the other, if you’re paying attention, ...” Tiffany Baker*
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Isn't it sad when you meet someone who sees herself as a "weed" and doesn't see or feel like the lovely person you see before you? How wonderful it is when you can help that person recognize the beauty that you see.
Tiffany Baker talks about "two faces" and the importance of realizing which "face" you're dealing with - and the potential to "tip" the balance - if we're paying attention.
Paying attention is the key. Most people are very busy nowadays. More often than not we walk past people, strangers as well as family and friends, without paying enough attention to recognize what's going on in their lives and hearts. A smile, a hug, a listening ear, a helping hand might make a huge difference to someone - might tip the balance from the negative to the positive.
The concept of tipping the balance is a scary one. We underestimate the stewardship (and power) we have to affect someone else's life for good.
This brings to mind the story of the man at the pool of Bethesda. People who needed healing gathered at the pool of Bethesda. The belief was that whomever was first in the water after it was stirred up (troubled) by an angel would be healed. Someone had taken an invalid to the pool. Christ found him there and could tell he'd been beside the pool a long time. The man explained he couldn't be healed because someone always got into the water before he could.
"... but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me." John 5:7
"Another steppeth down before me" really hit me not long ago when I was studying the scriptures. How many times have I "stepped" in front of someone, focused on my own needs and own errands and oblivious to the needs of those around me?
Christ was paying attention. He noticed the man and healed him. He tipped the balance and made all the difference in that man's life. He can make a difference in all our lives. We can make a difference for others as we follow His example.
*The Little Giant of Aberdeen County,
by Tiffany Baker, page 269
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