Soft Answers

A SOFT ANSWER DOES TURN AWAY WRATH

It’s reassuring to doubters, such as I, to find science reinforcing Biblical ideas. (Don’t get too worried about me. I don’t depend on science for the basic issues.) Here’s a new development I read about in Look magazine:

A SOFT ANSWER DOES TURN AWAY WRATH, according to the results of a four-month study of unruly children who were discipline problems in school. Normal and loud teacher reprimands that could be heard by the whole class had no effect on the disruptive behavior of such children. When the teachers switched to soft reprimands that could be heard only by the child being corrected, most of the unruly children misbehaved less often. A return to loud reproaches resulted in an increase in poor behavior, and later return to soft corrections again resulted in better behavior. K. Daniel O’Leary, associate professor of psychology, and a team of graduate students at the State University of New York, Stony Brook, conducted the study.

We who take the Bible so literally might try putting some of its very concrete suggestions into practice – starting with this one.

An Unusual Sin

                                   THE SIN OF RUINING GOOD DAYS

Lady:   When I throw away spoiled food from the refrigerator it makes me feel guilty all day.

Pastor:   A day spoiled by feeling guilty is a far greater waste than a few items of food being thrown away.

How typical --unable to accept my imperfection I gloom around for days over a mistake thereby corrupting hundreds of precious hours – a far greater sin.

Who do I think I am if a little flaw gets me down. I must in fact think I’m pretty good – if that can ruin my day.

May God help me to throw away my mistakes, forgive myself, and charge cheerfully and confidently ahead determined not to waste the day with unnecessary guilt.

Saint Thomas Edison

Have you ever seen the inventor of the Electric Light Bulb called Saint?  I haven't.  I have never seen his picture on the cover of a Christian periodical either.  Nor have I read anything lifting up this man as an instrument of God. 

Thomas Edison was raised in a Christian home but as he invested himself in his innumerable inventive projects his life showed little interest in church-going or other conventional Christian activities.  Is that why he is not hailed and honored by the Christian community?  He wasn't a conventionally involved "Man of God".

A more apprpriate regard for Thomas Edison, "the illuminator of the world" is to see him as a uniquely capable Instrument of God.  Christianinty and all of the world should regard him as one through whom the creative wonders of God have flowed to bring an enormous blessing to humanity.

His goodness, his genius, his creative abilities should be praised, and honored by Christians.  The fact that he was not a God-worshipping, church-going Christian is irrelevant.  That is too bad, but it does not disqualify him as one of the great Saints of history--if Saint is understood as someone through whom God has worked to make the world a better place.

It is easy to add a lot of names to this list of Saints who were not necessarily aware of the goodness of God that was flowing through them.  What a beautiful message the Christian Church could send by honoring, praising and commemorating the contributions of these people who have made the world a better place---Jonas Salk, Firestone,  H.J.Heinz, Henry Ford....  The list is endless.

God loves the world.  His presence is seen perfectly in dying for us, but beyond that his love is seen in healing, beautifying, improving, facilitating, that have made human life more pleasant, hopeful and enjoyable.  And his instruments, whoever they are, should be seen as servants of God, or Saints--whether they knew it or not.  

Kindness Bridges Chasms

KINDNESS BRIDGES CHASMS

We come now to our last step in growth in kindness.
Since kindness is power, I’m going to exercise this kind of power and only this kind of power, in every situation. Many wonder if kindness is power. They try to rule situations by threats. But threats soon wear out. No one is ever really changed by threats. Only by kindness can people be changed. Look back over your life and see who are the people who have influenced you and how. You’ll find kindliness at the basis of all influence over you.

A German pastor stood looking out over the ruined city of Frankfurt, now slowly rising again. His eyes were wet with tears as he told me of a pastor and his yound people who came to Germany from America for the summer to help rebuild the ruins. They were obviously not used to this hard manual labor, but they heroically toiled beside German laborers. Some of the girls, dead tired at eventide would throw themselves upon their beds and go straight to sleep. The German workmen were at first non-communicative, but gradually they saw the motives behind it all. Then one day, said the pastor, he saw a German workman take out of his pocket a piece of precious cake and offer it to the pastor. It seemed to echo the word of Jesus so long ago; “Take, eat.” “And there,” said the pastor, “I saw the chasm of hate and feat bridged – bridged by this incarnate kindness to the pastor and his group.” Kindness is power. Use no other.

Some Quakers were feeding people in Poland during the war. A Polish woman came up and said to them, “You feed everybody?” “Atheists, Poles, Russians, Germans?” “Yes.” “Jews, Catholics, Protestants?” “Yes.” She drew a deep sign and said, “Well, I knew there ought to be people in the world like that, but I didn’t believe there were.” And that proved to be power. For as someone said, “There were only two who came out at the end of the war with enhanced reputations – Christ and the Quakers.” And they both used kindness against the background of hate and force.

Gracious Father, help me this day to be clothed with kindliness. May the first thing people see in me be kindliness. Amen.

AFFIRMATION FOR THE DAY: God lets His kindly rain fall on the evil and the good. I also shall rain kindliness on all, regardless.

We Must Make Choices

The Risk in Being a Good Samaritan

There is almost always a risk in being a Good Samaritan. To stop by the side of the road, even when there appears to be no physical danger, always includes choosing for one thing and against another. Doing the right thing often requires neglecting something else that may be urgent. That neglect may irritate someone.

My Administrative Assistant arrived late one morning, which bothered me. She explained that her nephew was seriously ill and she had stopped to bring some food and encouragement. My slight irritation was unimportant because she was doing the right thing, while neglecting her office job. That is the way it is---you can’t really care very extensively without bothering or neglecting something or someone else; at least some of the time. We must make choices.

Feedback on Care and Kindness Conference

I enoyed the Care and Kindness Conference. It was one of the best experiences I have had in my life. To be on the grounds of the church is an inspiration in itself. All the seminars we attended were beneficial as well as intructional. My wife thought they were well done and the whole thing was put together in a professional manner....We also enjoyed having the chance to meet new people from different places..... It was indeed a very refreshing time.

A Wonderful Possibility

Bringing Heaven to Earth    Jesus prayer is challenging. Think about these words: “… your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” What an enormous project that is, to bring the goodness of heaven to life on earth.

Those words get at what Christian living is about. We are here to make the world a better place. It is more about bringing heaven to earth than about waiting to go to heaven. In heaven we will feel good about ourselves, confident, unafraid, feel loved and valued all the time. We will love everyone and understand life, nature and history, and a lot more. On earth as it is in heaven means working at making life more peaceful, loving, and secure. That is our task as followers of Jesus. What a wonderful assignment and every small, medium, or large act of kindness, creativity, diligence, and perseverance contributes to the goal.