Scripture: Acts 16:20-22
When the owners of the slave girl had brought Paul and Silas before the magistrates, they said, “These men are disturbing our city; they are Jews 21 and are advocating customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to adopt or observe.” The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates had them stripped of their clothing and ordered them to be beaten with rods.
Thought for the Day: Wendell Berry is my favorite poet, and I was caught by his words in a recent interview with Bob Allen. Berry said, “Condemnation by category is the lowest form of hatred, for it is cold-hearted and abstract, lacking even the courage of a personal hatred…Categorical condemnation is the hatred of the mob. It makes cowards brave. And there is nothing more fearful than a religious mob, a mob overflowing with righteousness – as at the crucifixion…This can happen only after we have made a categorical refusal to kindness: to heretics, foreigners, enemies or any other group different from ourselves.” Paul and Silas knew this experience continually, yet once their community gained power a few centuries later, they persecuted the Paul and Silas’ of their generation. Let us not forget the hurts of our pasts, and then become the source of that pain in someone else’s life.
Prayer: You always remain consistent, O God, in your treatment of others. Assist me to express your grace no matter if my position is one of weakness or power. Amen.
TONIGHT–WEDNESDAY
Dinner from 5:30-7:00pm
Study Opportunities from 6:30-7:30pm
(Children’s Choir from 6:30-7:30pm)
SUNDAY
Special Thank You
For Bud Habel & Gerri Coy
at Holy Grounds
10:30am
