The Linus Bent

There is a Charlie Brown comic strip in which Lucy and her brother Linus have just finished a chicken dinner and Lucy is explaining to Linus how to make a wish on the wishbone. “This is a wishbone, Linus,” she says. “We both make our wishes and then pull it apart. Whoever breaks off the biggest part gets his wish.”

Linus asks, “Do we wish out loud?” Lucy replies, “Of course, we wish out loud. If you don’t wish out loud the wish-answerer won’t know what to bring you.”

Lucy begins the wishing: “Let’s see now! I wish for a new doll, a new bicycle, four new sweaters, some new saddle shoes, a wrist watch, and about one hundred dollars.” Linus then gets his turn: “I wish for long life for all my friends. I wish for peace in the world. I wish for great advancement in the fields of science and medicine and…” But by this time Lucy is throwing away the unbroken wishbone in disgust, saying, “You seem to have a knack for spoiling everything.”

I have to imagine that most of us have both a little bit of Lucy and Linus within us. I call them the Lucy bent and the Linus bent. The Lucy bent is our selfish side, and it comes naturally to most of us. The Linus bent, however, is more human and humane. It takes a little more practice to live out of this side of ourselves. But, when we are able to get our minds off of ourselves, when we wish better for others and work for better for others, we find ourselves more joyful and more at peace.

The apostle Paul once wrote, “Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus… “

Let us pray: Loving God, we want to live out of a sense of contentment with who we are and with what we have. Grant us your grace. Help us to find ways to nourish and feed the “Linus” side of our personalities – to love and care for others. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.