Everyday People

There is a blue one who can't accept
The green one for living with
a black ones tryin' to be a skinny one
Different strokes for different folks
And so on and so on and scooby dooby dooby

Ooh sha sha
We gotta live together

I am no better and neither are you
We're all the same whatever we do
 I am everyday people.

During his earthly ministry, Jesus loved and accepted people just as they were.  To the rich, poor, popular and the not so famous, his message was the same. We are all a part of God’s creation and everyone deserves to be treated as such.   Who an individual is, what side of the tracks he or she originated, and to whose family they belong, should not be the deciding factors of our acceptance of them. These things should not matter to us because they don’t to God.  Are we greater than our Creator who made us and whose Son died for us?

In ministry we travel to various places and encounter all types of people.  Some are who society refers to as “All that.” Others are not as fortunate.  Because of the preferential treatment some individuals receive, others grow up unhappy with their lot in life and desire to be different. The poor desires to be rich, the short desires to be tall, the not so attractive individual suffer from low self- esteem and desire to be beautiful.

 Although people come from various walks of life, they are basically the same. Everyone wants to be loved and to belong.  Sly and the Family Stone echoed these same sentiments in their song, “Everyday People.”

Everyday people: unhappy, miserable, the red don’t like the white, who doesn’t like the black, who doesn’t like the rich, who can’t accept the poor; but guess what? Whether you are black, white, rich or poor, one thing has been determined and we can’t change it:  we got to live together.

 Jesus, our example, went about healing the sick and the hurting. His actions were criticized by many of the people of his day, but he reminded them of his purpose: “to rescue the lost.” What our Lord was saying is that He died for us all. Jesus saw everyone as equal.                                           

 No matter how society labels an individual, no one group is more superior to the other. God’s plan for a success filled future was not limited to one particular group. It included everyone. His promise is to all men.

Because he saw everyone the same, his love was extended to us all. If God does not discriminate and treats everyone the same, we must follow his example. After all, we are “everyday people.”

By: Travestine Wright