If you want to encounter God, the essence of what is Holy, you don’t have to go searching in the depths of spiritual places. You only have to look at other people. We are constantly told in the scriptures that God is in the people that we meet, the people that we help, and the strangers that pass by. If we want to feel God’s healing, work, and love more intensely then we needn’t spend our time trying to find the grand gestures that might invoke God’s presence and favor. It is in the little ways that we live our lives. It comes from the little acts of kindness that we incorporate into our daily living.
A few weeks ago, when Madeleine finally made the switch from formula to cow’s milk, I grossly underestimated the amount of milk a child her size could drink in a week. So when I went grocery shopping I only got a gallon. Well it turns out she drinks around a gallon and a half in a week. So near the end of the week I needed to go backto the grocery store to get another half gallon of milk. So I got out of work, picked her up from school, and swung by Aldi.
I was just running in quick so I didn’t bother with a cart. So holding her on one hip I rushed into the store went over to the refrigerated aisle and got the milk and prepared to wait in line. Either I met a very considerate person or I must have looked like a hot mess because the lady in front of me insisted that I go first. She was in no rush and she could see that I was uncomfortable. I was so appreciative of her small act of kindness because I was tired, Madeleine was getting heavy, and I just wanted to go home and sit down for a few minutes. The grocery store was the last place I wanted to be.
It was a little heartwarming in a world where people are so divided and hate seems more prevalent than ever to have someone be kind, just for the sake of being kind. This is how we are called to connect with God. We just simply need to think of the needs of others and be kind for the sake of being kind. To make kindness and love a natural part of who we are and how we interact in the world. These are the acts that matter to God just as much as the grand acts of kindness and care.
In these ways we will be able to feel God and see God at work and alive in a divisive world. It is our way of experiencing the grace of God while sharing the grace of God at the same time. So today we will be joining together as part of our worship experience for a service project. We will be reaching out to children just as Jesus reached out to bless children so many years ago. We will be sharing the love of God by making special activity packs for children in need in the hospital to remind them of their innocence, of the love and care of humanity, and just how precious they are in the eyes of God. Remember the words of Jesus from this morning when he said, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them.’ For it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs”.[1]
So never forget to share the love of Christ with others, to offer love as a child would, and in so doing feeling the grace of God in your lives and in your experiences. Reach out and care for one another with no questions asked. Put the needs of the world first for that is how we honor God and build up our relationship with him. By touching the life of another through simple acts of kindness, we show our love for God and we just might brighten someone else’s day. Mother Theresa was known to say, “We cannot do great things on this Earth, only small things with great love”.[2] It is all about the love that we share, the love in our hearts, and how we make God’s love for humanity apart of our everyday experience. So let’s not lose this occasion to serve God by remembering and help the children in our world for it is our little actions that matter as much as the grand one for they show a commitment to living into God’s love.
[1] Luke 18: 15-17, NRSV.
[2] Mother Theresa, 20th Century.
(Based on Luke 18: 15-17)
