This is an adaptation of a reflection I shared in the daily call for prayer and inspiration which is led every weekday morning for volunteers and staff of Coastal Hospice.
What a different place and space we find ourselves than when the Spiritual Counselors began hosting these calls a few months ago. Whatever you believe about COVID-19 and Black Lives Matter and the stock market and our elected officials and how we best educate our children and so many other things, we are not where we were a few months ago. Things have changed and each one of us has changed. Don’t hang up because you think I am going to tell you how to think about a specific topic on the news. I’m not. Instead I’d like to encourage you to think about how you react to another person who has a different view than you hold. Because we are a healthcare organization, I’m going to focus on our reactions to COVID-19. Even on this call, I am going to make an educated guess that we have different responses and feelings to where we currently are with this virus. Some of us might think that everything should be opening up and people should be able to make their own choices with what to do. Others of us might think that we should have continued with stay at home orders in this state for a longer period of time. Like all of you, I have my own feelings on this based on my life experiences. Again, I want to say I’m not trying to change your mine on this. What I would like to call to your attention is how you react to someone who feels differently. How do you respond to someone who has a different view? What emotions bubble to the surface when someone is doing something that you disagree with? My reflection today is a call for kindness. We don’t have to agree. We can be kind. We don’t always understand what is going on in someone else’s life. We can be kind. We may worry about the future or not have a care in the world. We can be kind. I may not like what you do. I can be kind.
As you go about your day and into the weekend, don’t rush to judgment, bite your tongue when necessary, and believe in the good of other humans. Response with kindness in your thoughts, your words, and your actions. Lest you think this is Susannah calling us to all be Pollyannas, being kind is hard work. So be kind to each other and especially yourself!
Hear these words from Colossians 3: 12, “As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.”
God of Love, Fill us with your love this day, so we may be kind to ourselves and each other. And when that proves to be difficult, give us strength to try again. We are thankful to be called your beloved ones. Teach us your kindness. Amen.
