Word for Word 9/11/24
Rev. Kim Gates
My dear brothers and sisters, we as members of the human race and the Body of Christ simply must stop hurting each other. Last month I wrote about the Golden Rule and how we’re to treat others the way we want to be treated. Well, as we move into the highly charged presidential (and others) campaign, I believe we need to be reminded of this! There’s also an old saying, “if you can’t say something nice about someone then don’t say anything at all!”
Jesus embodied all that is good about humanity - he was perfect in his thoughts, words, and deeds. Folks who run the campaigns are not! They say terrible things (even lies) about their opponents and they have found that this is a successful way to win voters! What is wrong with us voters?
Another arena where our less-than-perfect humanity shows forth is as spectators at high school (really any age) sporting events. ‘Tis the season for grade school thru college sports seasons to start up the trash talk which can be just as mean-spirited as any political campaign! If you attend games/meets/matches/etc., you’ll no doubt hear people say derogatory things to the referees/officials and worse! You may even hear them say things to the players/participants along with their parents and fans! “If you can’t say something nice about someone then don’t say anything at all!” (I hear Thumper’s little rabbit voice from Disney’s Bambi every time I say or write this!)
Granted when injustice is raging and people are being injured in some way we must not be silent and we may even have to call a ‘spade’ a ‘spade’! However, in our daily lives we need to practice, practice, practice what Jesus preached to us! He taught care and respect, not defamation and degradation.
As Labor Day is the holiday for September may we all “labor” in doing good, saying good and thinking good things. When we strive to do what Jesus taught (like the “Golden Rule”) then we make God smile and are giving glory to God. “If you can’t say something nice about someone then don’t say anything at all!”
Rev. Kim Gates
St. Paul’s UMC, Waukon
and Monona UMC
