Scripture: Acts 7:26
The next day he came to some of them as they were quarreling and tried to reconcile them, saying, “Men, you are brothers; why do you wrong each other?’
Thought for the Day: A few years back, Edward Gilbreath wrote an article about St. George’s Methodist Church in Philadelphia. Two hundred years ago, a group of African American members of the church refused to sit in the black-only balcony. The leadership of the church tossed them out, and it gave birth to the African American Methodist Episcopal Church (AME Denomination). Just recently, the two churches reunited for a service of reconciliation. At the service, a cross was given to an AME pastor that was made from the nails that were kept after they tore down the black-only balcony. This is a wonderful moment of reconciliation in the life of the church, yet it took 200 years. May we learn to humble ourselves, ask for forgiveness, and seek healing with a little more expediency.
Prayer: Merciful God, as you have bridged deep divides with your grace, may you also assist the church as it ventures into the bridge-building of reconciliation. Amen.
