This past week there were several events in the media that got me thinking. The first was brought to my attention by my niece Michela. She told me that a Baptist Church in Kentucky voted to ban interracial couples from becoming members. That vote has since been overturned, which I am pleased to report. However, it still bothers me that there are people in this country that think they have the right to say who can and who cannot attend church. We are talking about church – not my house or your house, but the house of God.
The second “news” item, if you can call it that, was the Rick Perry ad where he begins by saying “he is not ashamed” to call himself a Christian, and then proceeds to question why people who are gay can serve openly in the military, but our kids can’t openly celebrate Christmas. By now, I am sure you’ve seen dozens of parodies of this ad… if not, YouTube is full of them. But the thing that bothers me most is that he begins this ad by calling himself a Christian and then advocates hatred.
When I was younger, I sang in our church choir and also played handbells with the bell choir. In our choir, there were rich kids and poor kids, black kids and white kids. We all got along and had fun being together making music. I was thinking about those days this past week and recalled a song that I loved. It is called, “They’ll Know We Are Christians By Our Love.” You can read the lyrics here if you’re interested.
Tonight, after a busy day of catering, I prepared a Ham and Cheddar Quiche. It was near 8PM and I still had not chosen a pie recipient. My daughter needed to go to the store to buy a few groceries and I asked her to drive through town looking for someone in need. As we passed the movie theatre we saw a man seated on the ground with a cardboard sign. She pulled over and I walked back to where the man was sitting and noticed his sign “Hoping for Random Acts of Kindness.”
I approached him and asked if he would like a Ham and Cheddar Quiche. He looked at me and said, “Yes Please.” He told me he would share it and as I handed it to him I warned him that the pan was still a bit hot. He took the pie and said it felt good on his cold hands… much like a hand warmer. And then he thanked me and wished me a good evening. And as I left him, I couldn’t help but think that this is the kind of thing that the Christ I believe in would have us do.
Pie a Day Give Away 
I believe that too. You’re an incredible inspiration. Thank you for being you.
xoxo,
Al
Thank you sweetie. You are an inspiration to me too!
I agree with Alex! You are an inspiration! Thank you for mentioning that case. I struggle with the decision to attend or not attend church simply because I’ve come across too many “Kentucky” stories and too many hypocrites but I do believe church should be as you described and that a church is not my house or your house but the house of God! I am thankful for all you do and so proud to call you my Aunt! Lots of love and hugs to you!
Thank you Michela. I’ve been thinking about it since you mentioned it to me. Very glad that there was a public outcry… and that the decision has been reversed.
For some reason this phrase from Dear Abby keeps rolling around in my head “A church is not a museum for saints; it is a hospital for sinners.” To me it means we all have things going on that we could do better… and the church gives us (or should give us) a place to work on ourselves.
Sending you love and a big burst of pride at your completing your nursing program!!!
Love that phrase! I think maybe I’ll post it today! That’s an excellent way to view it. I’m glad for the outcry as well but I’d have to guess that there are so many other situations we don’t hear about. Scary and sad!!
Karen, I very much know that you are a Christian by your love! You are someone I admire so much!
Donna, Thank you for that… I try to do the best I can… maybe that’s all we can do.
xxoo