From Ray:
Today is a holiday that has varying significance to each of us. One of my observations about history is that when you live through events and happenings they tend to shape you differently than just reading or studying about them. Some of us were a part of the civil rights movements in our nation during the 1960’s. We can recall the unrest and the daily news that awakened us to happenings that maybe we had no awareness of or had simply ignored. When Rev. Martin Luther King began to capture the attention of the national media, he probably was a new name to most of us. For a while we did not know what to make of him and ideas he was espousing. As time passed and we became more and more aware of the.situations that other Americans were living with, we also became aware of a leader who was calling for non-violent change. For some this was a welcomed model. Others did not accept him or his leadership, because change is always met by resistance in some fashion. Today’s holiday not only honors that leader, but also honors all people who live in repression and hardship no matter where they live or the circumstances in which they live. Those who lived in the 1960’s can easily recall the struggles that we lived with, both internally and outwardly.
Those who came along later and have had to learn about this period of history will rely upon videos, written accounts and the oral stories they hear from others. Your responses will vary as well.
No matter what our life experiences have been, all of us can agree that acts of kindness and service can go a long way in healing brokenness and helping our fellow citizens find some help. One of the challenges that is often issued for this day is for each of us to commit ourselves to service to others by volunteering in some fashion and to do some act of kindness. I challenge each of you and myself this day to connect with others who may be isolated with a call or a card and to ask, “Is there anything I can do for you today?” One of the greatest resources that Christians have is the discipline of prayer. How about writing someone today and include a written prayer for them? They can read that prayer over and over. Call someone on this cold day and just chat over the phone. Maybe make a donation to some agency that seeks to help people. You know what works best for you. Just do not let this day go by without making a difference in another’s life.
Prayer: Holy God, you send faithful servants into the world in every season of life to show us where wrongs need to be righted. It is not always easy for us to hear that word, but we want to be faithful to you by putting you first in our lives and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Help us today to see ourselves in every person that we meet, whether it is in person, on the television or in our memory. As we imagine ourselves living as they live, may we also imagine what another could do for us and make life better. Especially today we pray for those who are heavily burdened, some by growing weary in caring for others in these demanding times. Make us strong for this journey and caring for one another. Amen.