Dearly Beloved,
Grace and peace to you, Van Meter UMC Family!
I was thinking recently about times when I received unexpected acts of kindness or compassion. The simple act of someone sending me a note of encouragement had the unexpected power to totally change my day, touch my heart, and lift me up. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught, "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets." Matthew 7:12
We know this as the Golden Rule. A version of this teaching can be found in almost every religion in the world. Treating others as we want them to treat us – including those with whom we disagree – can be challenging, but it has the power to lift up and bring people together.
Our country seems to be consumed with division, often typified in the colors red and blue. Rather than stay in our monochromatic silos, the Golden Rule challenges us to engage in conversation and seek to create whatever common good we can with our relatives, friends, and neighbors whom we might consider to be on the "other side" politically, ideologically, or in other ways.
As we attempt to come together, the idea is not that we are trying to change each other, but rather we discover the beauty that can be created when we work together to make the world a better place. Most of us learned in school that if we mix red and blue paint together, a new color, purple, is created. It is in the "purple space" where we cultivate kindness, compassion, humility, respect, and love for one another and for the good of all the world, no matter what.
With that in mind, we'll be starting a five-week worship series on October 6 titled, "Do Unto Others". Some of the materials we'll be using in worship were developed in conjunction with Church of the Resurrection's fall Campaign for Kindness. This emphasis on treating others the way we would like to be treated, is a way for us, as a faith community, to bring a positive message into the weeks leading up to the election and afterward. Bringing people together is one of the most important things we can proclaim right now.
Over the five weeks, we'll explore the powerful witness we can have when our words and actions spread Kindness, Compassion, Humility, Respect, and Love.
I hope you'll join me in living more fully into "do to others what you would have them do to you." In and through the power of God's Spirit, together we can create a beautiful collage of purple spaces.
In Christ's gracious love,
Pastor Cathy Nutting