Kindness as a Spiritual Practice, with Rev. Dr. Steven Koski.

Kindness as a Spiritual Practice, with Rev. Dr. Steven Koski. Series: Everyday Peacemakers A Spacious Christianity, First Presbyterian Church of Bend, Oregon. Scripture: Romans 12.21;Galatians 5.22;Colossians 3.12;Matthew 5.9.

This Sunday, Rev. Dr. Steven Koski invites us to practice kindness as a spiritual discipline during Lent by clothing ourselves with compassion for others in a divided world.

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At First Presbyterian, you will meet people at many different places theologically and spiritually. And we love it that way. We want to be a place where our diversity brings us together and where conversation takes us all deeper in our understanding of God.

We call this kind of faith “Spacious Christianity.” We don’t ask anyone to sign creeds or statements of belief. The life of faith is about a way of being in the world and a faith that shows itself in love.

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Keywords:

kindness, world, god, love, spacious, people, lent, give, jesus, patient, tracy chapman, practice, hearts, feel, life, spiritual, grant, singing, lord, forces, presbyterian, church, online worship, bend, oregon

Featuring:

Rev. Dr. Steven Koski, Rev. Kally Elliott, Tyler McQuilkin, Becca Ellis, Brave of Heart, Guests

Transcript

Steven: 0:39

Welcome to worship with First Presbyterian Church of bend. We practice what we call a spacious Christianity, where there's room for everyone. And we mean to everyone, no matter where you find yourself on the faith journey. Even if you find yourself without faith, you are so very welcome here. We welcome your questions and doubts. And I see them as gifts that invite us into deeper conversations. We celebrate diversity and believe it's a strength. And we remind you every single week, that you are made in the image of God's goodness, and that you are so very loved. And we do our best to live the spacious and radical love of Jesus so that all might have a chance to flourish in this world. As we try our best to practice a spacious Christianity we hope here that you can find space to breathe a faith you can believe in and a God who believes in you were so very glad to worship with you in this way. But if you find yourself in the area on Sunday mornings at 8:30am or 10am We'd love to have a chance to greet you in person take a deep breath and know that whether you're sitting on the couch at your desk in bed, maybe even washing dishes the presence of God's love is as close to you as your own breath and it's my prayer today that you might have become aware and experienced the presence of that love in a new way through our worship. Because when that happens it changes the way we are present in the world Welcome Have mercy on me, Oh gracious one, according to your steadfast love, according to Your abundant kindness. Forgive me where my thoughts and deeds have heard others. Lead me in the paths of justice, guide my steps on paths of peace. Teach me that I may know my weakness, the shortcomings that bind me. The unloving ways that separate me that keep me from recognizing your life in me. For I keep company with fear and dwell in the house of ignorance. Yet I was brought forth in love, love is my birthright. You have placed your truth in the inner being. Therefore teach me the wisdom of the heart. Forgive all that binds me in fear that I might radiate love to cleanse me that your light might shine in me. Fill me with gladness helped me to transform weakness into strength. Look not on my past mistakes, but on the aspirations of my heart. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. In fold me in the arms of love, fill me with your Holy Spirit. Restore in me the joy of your saving grace and encourage me with a new spirit. We recently opened our church doors as an emergency warming relief shelter, where the temperatures dropped below zero. And our homeless neighbors were in danger of freezing to death. And we allowed we allowed them to bring their pets with them. And I was I was deeply moved by the by the tender care our guests gave their pets and actually the affection and loyalty their pets, extended them to extend it to them. It reminded me of this picture. This picture I saw of Jennifer, a nurse in New York, who learned one of her patients John who was homeless, was forced to give up his dog Boomer to the local shelter. When he was hospitalized. Jennifer went to the animal shelter and adopted her patients dog so that she could bring him to visit while John completed his rehabilitation in the hospital. Jennifer said there, there are just so many worries in the world right now. That's the least I can do. I can't cure diseases. I'm not a miracle worker. I can't fix the world. But I can care for John's dog. As long as he needs me to. I can choose to be kind. You know, I wonder if that kind of kindness is what the kingdom of God looks like. At a time when there is so much cruelty in humanity, ugliness. The gift we can offer the world is the best of our humanity. That part of our humanity that is a reflection of God's goodness. The medicine the world needs is to believe in the power of kindness. John Rodale is a poet who wrote when the world goes mad. be wildly kind to everyone. Everyone, everyone. You can't control much. But you can control how you treat others. In these breaking news, heartbreaking times when nothing feels certain. Let your raw kindness be a certainty. Allow your compassion to become a North Star stand Up in the sky, for others to follow back home. The apostle Paul said Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil, with goodness and kindness. I mean this. This is our marching orders as people of faith to be to be a steady and reliable force for goodness and kindness in a world gone mad. It says in Galatians 522 that kindness is a fruit of the Spirit. In other words, there's something of God and every act of kindness, every act of kindness reflects the same spirit that was in Jesus. I know we think we think faith and our spiritual life should somehow somehow be more sophisticated than that. But honestly, to be faithful, is to be kind. Our acts of kindness are the portal that allows a little more of the mercy and tenderness of God into the world. Kindness is actually a spiritual practice. And kindness is a spiritual practice I encourage all of us to commit to and to work on during the season of Lent. The apostle Paul encourages us in the Book of Colossians. Therefore, as God's chosen people holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with kindness. What if after after brushing our teeth and after showering? What if we imagined clothing ourselves with kindness? trying the best we can to, to have kindness be our default for every situation that we find ourselves in. This weekend is the first weekend of the season of Lent. Now lent in the church is a season of reflection, repentance, renewal, leading to the celebration of Easter. Now, repentance for me, the word repentance, for many is a scary word, a scary church word. The word repentance actually mean just simply to turn to turn around, it actually means to rethink things. So the season of Lent, leading up to Easter is a time to intentionally reflect and rethink how we are showing up in the world to rethink how we live, and how we love. When we wake up on Easter morning, how will we be different? What new resurrection will we have experienced? How will our relationship with God with ourselves with others be different? How can we make make more room in our hearts and in our lives? For the love that changes everything? So how will we be different on Easter? And what are our plans for the next 40 days? To prepare for that? What is the spiritual work that we need to do? So that God can do what God does? Our theme for Lent is every day, peacemakers. Jesus said blessed are the peacemakers into a harsh world ugly with violence and hate. Jesus sends us as peacemakers. So during this season of Lent, we're going to focus on what does it mean to follow the peacemaking way of Jesus, the conflict polarization hate, that is saturating our world right now is actually likely to escalate and get worse in this election year. I've been saying these past few weeks that that our spiritual work for 2024 is to develop the capacity for a spiritual response to life. Grounding from grounded from a deep place of peace, compassion, kindness, wisdom, so to respond to life from our spiritual core, and not react to life from fear, anger, judgment, anxiety. And this season of Lent. is the time to really focus on that spiritual work. You know, it's a common practice to, to give something up for Lent. The one year I gave up chocolate, caffeine, and alcohol, the trifecta. I was, I was actually tempted to give up swearing as well, but decided that was actually more than I could handle. And I'm embarrassed to admit the result of this exercise and self discipline was that I found myself constantly thinking about myself. I mean, how I was feeling how hard it was how like, how I felt deprived? I mean, whenever anyone asked me, well, what are you giving up for Lent I, I boasted like, I should receive the gold star for letting discipline. I realized that my Lenten practice, was stroking my ego. Rather than surrendering my ego. I was so focused, leaving very little room for God to to find some space. Now I lost five pounds, but I I certainly wasn't any closer to God. I didn't experience a spiritual renewal. I didn't become a more loving person. So rather than giving something up for Lent, what if we took on something? mean? What if we practiced becoming everyday peacemakers? In this harsh world where there's so much hostility? What if we intentionally each day, clothed ourselves with kindness? What if we actually took up kindness as a spiritual practice for lead? You know, there's something of God. In every act of kindness, every act of kindness brings that same spirit that was in Jesus into the world. Did you see the incredible Performance at the Grammy Awards of, of Tracy Chapman singing the song fast car that she first released in 1988. With country star Luke combs. It was so uplifting, so inspiring, so incredible to people, to people who couldn't be any more different. Tracy Chapman, a queer, older, black woman, Luke combs, a straight young white male country singer. And there they were, united in song united in spirit. As I was watching this performance, there were tears in my eyes. Here was a black woman, and a white man singing together, about people down on their luck dreaming a better lives dreaming of a better world singing about a fast car fast enough so they can fly away. Just for a moment in that song and these two artists singing together. And the obvious respect. You could see it in their eyes that they extended to each other. Just for a moment. The politics the hate the divisions faded away. And we got a glimpse of the more beautiful world that our hearts know is possible. There are two forces at work in the world. The forces of integration joining us together and the forces of disintegration pulling us apart. That moment of Tracy Chapman and Luke combs singing together. It was such a beautiful example of the forces of integration. I mean music uniting two disparate people, bringing them together and inspiring all of us. That a different way a different world is possible. We need more of those moments. There are definitely forces of disintegration at work in the world. You're grabbing us by the lapels demanding our attention. We need to turn our attention we need to turn our hearts to the forces of integration. kindness. Kindness as a daily spiritual practice is a force of integration in a world trying to pull us apart a childhood Dell said when the world goes mad, be wildly kind to everyone. Everyone. Someone shared with me recently that she was as she was driving to work, she was following a car that had a sign in the back window that said, learning to drive a stick shift. Sorry for any delay. My friend said, Knowing this information, she actually then became very patient, be patient with their slow shifting and their their stops and starts. And she said, they're actually doing pretty well for just learning. The but then she asked herself a tough question. Would I have been just as patient and kind if the sign hadn't been there in the back window of the car? And she said, I can almost definitely say no, no, I probably wouldn't have been very patient or kind. We really don't know what people are going through in life. And everyone and I mean, everyone is going through something. We don't wear signs that illustrate our personal struggles, you know, you don't see signs, tape to people's shirts that say, going through a divorce or lost a child or struggling with depression or are diagnosed with cancer. If we could read visually, what those around us are going through the burdens, they're carrying the grief, they're holding the wounds that aren't healed. If we could read that visually, I'm sure we would definitely be more patient in kind. But we shouldn't have to see signs. We shouldn't have to have a reason to treat strangers or, or even friends and family members with an extra dose of kindness. We should be kind whether we know what's going on or not whether they deserve it or not. Kindness you know kindness that the word it seems like a soft word, a word maybe reserved for Hallmark cards or Disney movies. Certainly not a word that belongs in the harsh realities of this world. But in a world that lives like a clenched fist. Kindness is the courage to walk in this world. With a tender heart and an open hand. There is something of God in every act of kindness, every act of kindness brings that same spirit that was in Jesus into the world. To follow the peacemaking way of Jesus is to practice kindness. I want to finish with one more John modell poll. Whenever I feel helpless in this overwhelming world, I become a helper on the days when it feels like I have no power. I serve others with kindness. You see whenever I wash the world's feet, my hands, stop shaking. Friends Blessed are the peacemakers can Blessed are those who join the forces of integration in the world. Blessed are those who clothed themselves with kindness May it be so. friends as we seek to be everyday peacemakers during the season of Lent, our blessing is the prayer of St. Francis in reverse. Lord make us a channel of disturbance, where there is apathy. Let us provoke where there is blind compliance. Let us bring questioning where there is silence. May we be your voice, where there's too much comfort and too little action, Grant disruption, where there are doors closed and hearts locked. Grant the willingness to listen. When pain is overlooked and tradition speaks louder than suffering grant that we may seek to do justice rather than just talk about it. Where there is cruelty. May we show fierce kindness when the ugliness of inhumanity is on full display. May we show up with the very best of our humanity? Disturb us Lord, to be with, as well as for the alienated to love the unlovable, as well as the lovely Lord make us a channel of disturbance that your love might flow like a mighty stream. And we might be everyday peacemakers. Go in the peace and love of Christ. And may the love that you bring into the world. bring peace to others. Amen. Friends, we sincerely hope you found this broadcast and worship meaningful. Please help us make it possible to reach others with the important message of a spacious Christianity. First, Presbyterian seeks to serve Jesus by serving the needs of others showing up in our community and the world when and where love and compassion are needed the most. Your generosity helps us to be generous in love and offer hope at a time when hope is in short supply for so many. financial gifts large and small, make a huge difference in helping us continue these broadcasts and helping us continue to serve the needs of others in our community in the world. You can give online at band F p.org. You can use the QR code on your screen or mail a check to the church. We hope to see you again and please reach out if we can support you in any way. Until the next time. May God bless you and may you be a blessing to others.