This Week's Light Service Sermon

Light Service Sermons for the Month
Putting the Life Back Into Life
Putting the Kindness Back Into Life
DATE: November 22, 1998
TEXT: 1 Thessalonians 5:15

Three burly fellows on huge motorcycles pulled up to a highway café. Inside the café sat a truck driver (just a little guy), perched on a stool eating his lunch. The three fellows walked into the café, spotted the guy, grabbed his food away from him and laughed in his face. The truck driver said nothing. He got up, paid his bill and walked out. One of these three cyclists, frustrated that they had not succeeded in provoking this truck driver to fight, turned to the waitress and commented, "Well, he wasn't much of a man, was he?" The waitress said, "I guess not" Then as she looked out the window she added, "I guess he's not much of a truck driver either. He just ran over three motorcycles."
We cheer for that truck driver, but unfortunately in our day and our time, instances like this often come too close to home.
A few years ago, when my son Skip and I were looking at colleges, we were walking across a certain campus when we heard gunshots. We stopped in our tracks back tracked toward the car and decided simultaneously, that he wouldn't be going to school here.
When a local decorated policeman is convicted of killing his estranged wife, you get the feeling this is really getting too close for comfort.
The homicide rate among young American males is twenty times that of Western Europe. And forty times that of Japan. And it's no wonder? Our role models have become more violent. Sports heroes are more violent. They have even been known to bite the ears off of their opponents. Movie heroes are more violent. With apologies to Minnesota, they now have a professional wrestler as their governor. Children's programming today carries an average of 25 scenes of violence every hour. Fifty percent more than the early 80's. 95% of children's cartoons have a violent theme. It's no wonder America is considered a violent nation.
Whether we're an adult or a child, the scenes of violence we see are almost overwhelming. Still it continues to escalate and we're caught in the middle. The violence we see and experience all around us creates in us fear, anxiety and anger. Where does it stop?
As we continue our theme "Putting the Life Back into Life," we're going to focus on putting kindness back into life--our lives, and in turn, those around us. Before I talk about that Let's pray…
Dear God in heaven. Kindness, civility, gentleness often seem lost arts in a world bent on destruction. When we continue to make the issue my rights, my entitlements, what I am owed in life, then we will never be concerned about "your will being done on earth as it is in heaven." Are we crazy in believing that you want us to always seek the good, not return evil for evil, make love not war? Or are you crazy like a fox. Thank you God for our belief. Help us in our unbelief. AMEN
Today's text from the Apostle Paul is short but powerful. He speaks to the church in Thessolonica, "See that none of you repays evil for evil. But always seek and do good to one another and to all."
A couple men were golfing on a course right next to a cemetery. Just as one golfer prepared to putt, a hearse turned into the cemetery. The man looked up, dropped his putter, took off his hat and bowed his head. About two minutes later he finished his putt. This man's golf partner stood in amazement. He said, "I'm so deeply moved by your reverence for the deceased." The golfer responded, "Well, I feel it's the least I could do, having been married to her for the last 34 years."
Kindness begins in the home. Consider two families. One with clenched fists. One with open hands. Both living in the same town, the same neighborhood on the same street. The clenched fisted father has had it up to here! (Hand above head) He's had it with his hard work and low wages. He's had it with hot-rodders pulling in front of him on the freeway. He's had it with the long lines and the long waits and poor service. He's had it up to here! He comes home just like this (fists clenched). Frustrated. Angry. This clenched fist he then shakes at his family. He shakes it at his wife with cruel words, rudeness, sitting on the couch and hot helping with family chores. He shakes it and he shakes it and he shakes it. Eventually, his wife's hand grows clenched as well. She shakes it at him. And she shakes it at her son. After a time, her son's hand grows clenched as well. Unfortunately, he doesn't leave his clenched fist at home. One day at school he grows angry and this fist finds a home in the face of a classmate.
Rudeness, anger, and violence are like that. They are like a virus that spreads. A poison that not only affects the individual but friends and family and neighborhoods and eventually a nation.
There is another family, same street, same neighborhood. They face the same disappointments, same frustrations, same challenges, but somehow this family keeps an open hand. The mom and dad, although they come home tired and weary, use this open hand to give their children a hug. They use this open hand to pat Johnny on the back when he does a good job. They use this open hand to help each other around the house. They use this open hand to love the people around them and help them heal.
Two families. One with clenched fists. The other with open hands. What makes the difference? What keeps us from getting clenched fists? And what helps us keep an open hand in our day and time?
The heart of the matter is a matter of the heart. The root of kindness begins in the heart and impacts our actions and words. And ultimately, kindness begins with God. Kindness begins with our sense and our experience that God is kind to us.
Little Barry was dressing up to go to kindergarten when he told his dad, "Dad I'm going to be sad today." Puzzled, his dad looked at him and asked, "Why?" Barry responded, "When the children are sad about something the teachers take turns giving them hugs."
You and I like Barry, deep down in our hearts need hugs. We need physical hugs; we need spiritual and emotional hugs. We need to know that someone--at least one person--cares about us. We need one person to show us that kindness. That's what God wants to give to each and everyone of us. The more we experience that hug from God, the kinder we will be to others.
I'd like to share with you three ways that God's kindness can permeate our hearts and help us spread kindness to others.
First of all, God's kindness places high value on each and every individual. Consider the life of Jesus. Where did he spend his time? He hung out with sinners, with outcasts, with people who were not treated with kindness. He ate meals with them. He spoke kind words to them. He healed them. He lifted them up and showed them high value. He spent time with children. In Jesus' day and time, children were not treated with much dignity and value. But Jesus treated them with such. He spent time encouraging women, who at that time and place were not treated with respect. Jesus showed them respect and kindness. Jesus placed high value on each and every person.
There was a mentally impaired little boy who sat in the middle of an aisle in the drug store, pulling bottles off the shelf and playing with them. The pharmacist walked by and angrily yelled at him, telling him to stop. No matter what the man said, that little boy continued to pull bottles off the shelf. Just them the little boy's older sister came by. She immediately knelt down and put her arms around him and whispered in his ear. Immediately he picked the bottles up and put them away. The big sister looked up at the pharmacist and said, "Sir, when you yell like that he doesn't understand. I just love it into him."
Just as that girl placed high value on her little brother and loved him into it, so Jesus loves it into each and everyone of us. As we do that we show God's kindness with others.
Secondly, kindness places people before principles. Have you ever said or heard it said, "Well, it's the principle of the thing." Sometimes it is. Rules, of course, most of the time are not meant to be broken. But Jesus also demonstrates God's kindness by placing people before principles.
A man was ill, he needed to be healed. It was the Sabbath day. But it was against the law to heal on the Sabbath. Nevertheless, Jesus met that sick man and with actions of kindness, and healed him. By doing so he drew tremendous criticism from his peers. Jesus placed people before a principle.
There's a funny story about an old man who was on his deathbed. His children gathered around him in his bedroom. The eldest son stepped forward and respectfully asked him, "Papa, is there anything we can do for you?" The man said, "Yes, I have one wish. I smell something delicious and familiar. It smells like your mama's apple strudel. Bring me some of that delicious apple strudel. There is none like it!" The son hurried off to the kitchen. He was there much longer than expected and finally came back empty handed. Papa asked, "What took you so long, and where' my apple strudel?" The son with a long face said, "Papa, you know what Mama's like. You know how practical and strict she is. Well, she said the apple strudel is for after your funeral!"
Sometimes our principles, our rules get in the way of kindness toward people. They become a barrier. They don't allow us to reach out in friendship toward others. Our agendas create walls instead of bridges of kindness. But Jesus steps beyond those barriers and he reached out in love to care for those around him. He invites us to do the same.
Finally, God's kindness spreads contagiously to others. A woman who sat at the toll road at the Bay Bridge in San Francisco one winter day, reached out her hand to the toll operator and said, "I'm going to pay for myself and for the next six cars behind me." And she handed him the money. The toll operator was delighted to share with the next six drivers that their ways was paid! The kindness spread.
The woman who wrote, Jesus CEO, tells the story about her friend Beau. They were delivering some oversized pillows to the Dallas Trade Center, 4th floor. It was cold and spitting rain. The client to whom the pillows were being delivered said, "Just park in the yellow zone and bring the pillows up quickly." So that's what they did. They parked there and were just about to take the pillows out of the car, when along came the security guard. He barked at them, "Hey!" You aren't supposed to bark there!" Laura said that her blood was about to boil, and she was ready to let this security guard just have it. But just as she was about to speak, her friend Beau took another tact. He turned to that security guard and he said with all the kindness he could. "Sir, Ms. Higgins instructed us to park there to deliver these pillows. But maybe I made a mistake. You're the boss. You tell me what to do and I'll do what you say." He then looked the guard straight in the eye and smiled. Laura said that she'd never seen such a meltdown of an authority figure in all her life. The security guard said, "…I….guess it's okay if you park here for a minute. I'll watch your car so that nobody gives it a ticket or steals it." They delivered the pillows and as they were leaving the security guard kindly took away some barricades and helped them on their way.
God's kindness spreads contagiously. Just as violence spreads from person to person, even more kindness can spread contagiously to others. We need not wait for this to become a "kinder, gentler nation." Or a "kinder, gentler community." Or a "kinder, gentler church." You and I can take the first step to reach out in kindness to others and it's going to spread. It's going to become a contagious movement.
Someone called it a "guerilla goodness." Doing things that others don't see. Random acts of kindness. And these acts inspire in others acts of kindness as well.
Kindness begins with God. It begins with a relationship with Jesus Christ. It's Jesus who held out his warm and tender hands to gather the children together. It's Jesus who laid tender, open hands on the sick and placed mud in their eyes to heal them. It's Jesus, whose open hands broke bread and fed the hungry. It's Jesus who allowed spikes to be driven into his hands to be nailed to a cross. It's Jesus who right here today reaches out with open hands to you and says, "Come. Come to me all you who are weary and heavy-laden and I will give you rest. Come to me all of you who've been abused or violated, I will give you rest. Come to me all you who feel that this world is just too cruel and unkind to you. I will give you rest."
Jesus says to you, "Come and me. See my kindness, my care for you. Then, let's open our hands together with love and care for the people around this world. Let's make a difference."
AMEN