Filling in the Blanks

The other night a friend and I visited a small artistic community out in L.A. I have wanted to go out there ever since I read a book “Untamed”, written by Alan and Deb Hirsch, who are part of this community. Of course it figures that the night we went, they were doing things differently than usual (that always happens when I go someplace new), but in spite of that I was still able to get a good picture of what they are about. Even though the evening was unlike anything I’ve attended before, I had a great time and found the people engaging, unique, and disarmingly real.

I know my opinion going there was swayed (in a positive way) because of how much I liked the book, and that got me thinking about how big a role our prejudices play when we encounter something new.

We have a habit of making quick assessments based on the little we hear, see, or know. This happened to Jesus when the religious leaders saw the prostitute crying at his feet, or him eating with “sinners”. What they saw only affirmed what they already believed about him. And what they believed was wrong.

This happens to us as well. Some after reading about this group I mentioned visiting may assume because I used the words artistic and unique that they are unorthodox in their beliefs. Others are reading this and wondering, “When did you even talk about their beliefs?” I didn’t. Some of you thought fondly of them simply because I used the words artistic and real. But WE ALL key on things or words that have certain meanings to us and file the rest under the labels we make.

The problem with labeling people is that it prevents you from seeing what's clearly before your face; all you're seeing now is the label and instead of allowing the truth to fill in the details, you fill in the blanks with what you already believe, even if what you believe is wrong.