Richie and Gina Homily - Colossians 3:12-18

Who does your attitude reflect?

During the crazy year of COVID many of us have gotten very used to weary comfortable and casual clothes. Shorts and a t-shirt, sweatpants, hoodies, and some of us may have even had business meetings with a nice shirt but with no pants at all.

Because we dress for occasions and we dress in a way that tells others what is important to us. If you go into an office you may wear a dress, or a suit and tie, if it is Sunday and you are getting ready for the football game you may wear the jersey of your favorite team and player. It is a decision we make every morning, a decision that affects the rest of our day. It directs our attitude, and it reflects how we want others to see us.

In Colossians Paul tells the readers what they are to put on each day. Compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, bearing with one another, and forgiving each other. And above all else, he says, they are to put on love.

Why does he use the language of “putting on”? Because it is something that you must choose to do, it is reflective of your attitude and how you want to treat others. We all know we can have bad mornings and we can be tired. We can choose to make that day about us and cause everyone else to tolerate the mood we are in.

What we are told here though is that we must choose to be the type of people that wake up desiring to serve one another, that desires to lift up those around us rather than bring them down with us.

In marriage this is a choice that we must make as well. A choice that Richie and Gina will have to make.

Richie and I saw each other a lot growing up with our families being pretty close by. But he is a few years older than me and I found myself on several occasions being caught up in his shenanigans. For instance when he graduated high school he decided to take our cousin Spence and I jeep mudding for the first time. Promising both of our parents that he would keep us safe. Now we did make it back in one piece, but our jeep did stall in the mud with the whole car filled with water, completely covering the clothes that we were in. Neither my mom or Spencer’s moms were real pleased with that.

Then when I went to college my uncle Richard, his father, allowed me to drive the Corolla that had been passed down through several family members. But Richie decided he was going to give me a nice little gift by putting a white racing stripe off-center from the hood to the trunk. You know, cause that will really help you get a date when your in college.

But as I have talked with Gina and with Richie I have heard the sacrifices that he has made for Gina, how he has become like a father to Gina’s son Lincoln, how he has sought to give more of his time to Gina where he would usually spend it enjoying time with friends and going out.

I have only known Gina for several months now but I can tell she is determined and that she is not easily impressed. Especially with a son, it isn’t always easy to trust someone else with your son. But she has trusted Richie and valued his input.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your heart

But it isn’t always easy to trust someone and to sacrifice for another.

But what Paul says here in Colossians says is that the way that we are able to put these things on is because the peace of Christ rules in our hearts and let the word of Christ dwell in us.

This peace in Christ that rules in our hearts is a peace that allows us to be calm when it is easy for tensions to be high. It is a peace we have because if you believe in Christ your peace is secured in him, that you do not worry about the future, but you know you have been saved and you know that this is a gift you didn’t deserve.