Vertical and horizontal. 

A vertical relationship with God and a horizontal relationship with others sets the stage for all other instruction.

Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭22‬:‭36‬-‭40‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The axis of power is manifest when you’re right with God and servant to your fellow man. 

The greatest among you will be your servant. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭23‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Just for fun, I asked ChatGPT to write my eulogy using only information available about me on the internet. 

The nearly instant summary was a paragraph extolling my virtues of being “a deeply religious man” with a “sincere care and concern for the welfare of others, particularly the elderly.”

Not entirely disappointed, I wondered if this is all the world will remember of me when I’m gone. 

It seemed to check both the X and Y axes, but thought the summary was otherwise unremarkable.

We are our own worst critics. 

Our personal standards of what it means to be a Christian can get lost in our history of rule keeping and rule breaking, and for most of us, that’s not on the internet. 

Nonetheless, while you’re pursuing performance on these two commandments, don’t forsake the simplicity of John 3:16, the one that supersedes both.