The Great Equalizer

There are few things in life that put all people on the same level of play. There are pro athletes, good athletes and pathetic athletes (my category). Upper, middle and lower economic levels; people who wear Prada and those who wear Wal-Mart; there are bosses and worker bees; and on it goes. Very few situations can bring all these diverse groups into an equality of being. One of these situations is the hospital emergency room and waiting rooms.

My dad recently had a health emergency and was rushed to the emergency room of an area hospital. Our family spent several anxious hours in the ER waiting room, the surgical waiting room and then almost a week in the ICU waiting room. Now, Dad is in a rehabilitation center and on the slow road to recovery. However, one thing I noticed over the past week is that the hospital ER and ICU will put everyone on an equal basis. This dawned on me as I was sitting next to a very professional appearing lady in designer clothes, hair styled perfectly and subtle (yet very classic) jewelry. As for myself, I had on my normal uniform of ratty cargo shorts, flip-flops, totally out of place hair and a t-shirt for some 5K road race that I bought at the thrift store.

For those of you who have been through such, you know that after a period of time, you begin talking to people in the lobbies, waiting rooms, cafeterias and hallways of the hospital. These are people you have never seen or known before, but you have the commonality that a loved one is sick and in need of care by you and the healing professionals. You share stories and experiences, scriptures, prayers and after a few hours and days you realize how much alike we are and that we also have a concern for these other people. We have family and friends that we care about and worry when they are sick or hurt. At those times, we will reach out to others in our need for comfort and the human touch…. no matter how well you play sports, what label is on your clothes, how large your house and what you do for a living. My family has experienced this over the past week.

There is another Equalizer that we will all have to encounter someday. That equalizer is God. If you have read much of my work, you know that one of my big soapboxes is that of acceptance of all people regardless of any characteristics different than our own, either outward or inward. The God I know and attempt to serve is a God who sees ALL people as equal and He wants us to see them the same way. In the final days, it does not matter whether we have a huge house or a doublewide on a dirt road. Nor does it matter whether we go to church in a gorgeous state-of-the-art building or gather with believers in a home or storefront in the local strip mall. All that matters to God, the great Equalizer, is that we love Him, love each other and treat all peoples with respect. Friends, I urge you to not spend the days we have here on earth expending the energy to judge and avoid others who appear to be different than us. When it all comes down to the basics, we're all the same.

In closing, I would like to thank all health professionals from doctors and nurses, residents and interns, lab technicians, housekeeping and volunteers. Your smiles and the pats on the shoulder make a huge difference. You are not simply in a career; you have been called to service.

And for today my friends, this has been the gospel according to Jimmy.