Critical Junctures

At a recent meeting of my religious community, we had a discussion on "critical junctures," in light of planning for our future. It brought to mind critical junctures in our personal lives where we have to make a decision that will impact our future. It might be a time of selecting a field of study in college, choosing a marriage partner, or taking a particular job.

It could also be smaller junctures like having an argument with a neighbor or friend and making a decision to resolve it peacefully or carry a grudge. Or perhaps a choice of whether to say something uplifting to another person or ignoring her or him. Critical junctures can give us the opportunity to be kind and loving or mean and hateful.

Our lives are full of choices and what we choose determines what kind of person we turn out to be. We are affected by the examples we see around us. If our parents were generous, loving people, hopefully we will be too. If they failed to model good behavior, we have one of our first  critical junctures - to imitate them or choose to act differently.

We often fail to realize what kind of effect we have on others.We can build each other up or tear each other down. When we encounter people, we can greet them warmly and share a story or bit of news and make their day, or we can pass them by and let them feel that they are not important or that we don't care about them. We need to build each other up so that we can spread the love that makes the world a better place. By using critical junctures to create a caring community, we build up the Body of Christ.