Be Kind and Do No Harm
February is the month for LOVE. So why can’t we all just love each other for the unique differences we all have and the amazing things we can all do to show GOD’S love for the world?
Up until recently, we have loved being involved in the UMC missions and reaching out to help those in need. We have always felt welcomed, loved and accepted by our immediate UMC family. We have loved serving on committees, leading committees, and pitching in to help as much as possible. We love serving GOD and try our best to show that love in all we do in our everyday lives. Being KIND to others and doing no HARM is the right thing to do.
However, with the recent turmoil within the world wide UMC surrounding the issue of discrimination and exclusion of the LGBTQIA+ community from the UMC, we are wondering where and if we can ever fit in and can we worship with our UMC congregation. It’s been a struggle to attend Sunday worship services or participate in church activities, knowing that there are some who do not believe we should be here. We love our church family and have felt both the joy and pain from the church. We have felt joy and comfort from the church members who have reached out with their love and support. They make sure to welcome us and tell us how much they miss us. That means a lot to us.
We did not want to be the reason anyone left our church. This feeling was one of the reasons we stepped back and did not come to church for a while. The pain we feel comes from knowing some members of the local congregation are not able to accept the changes the church is going through and have decided to leave. This was part of our do no HARM thought process. We just needed to step away and really think about if this was where we wanted to be or not. Was it going to be too painful? We love our church, but we need to figure out what is going to be best place for us.
We are fortunate, our pastor is being proactive and has formed an inclusion committee, has invited speakers to share their thoughts and personal experiences of discrimination and exclusion. These speakers talked about a wide variety of discriminations, not just LGBTQIA+ issues. The leadership team is actively participating in planning for a positive change and encouraging open dialogue within the congregation. This is a positive step in creating a loving, accepting, and warm place to worship together as a family. We love our church family and our pastor has continued to reach out and let us know we are loved and missed.
We are praying for a church that loves and accepts all of God’s children and provides a safe and loving environment that allows us all to grow in love and faith. We all just need to believe and have faith that God has a plan for all of us and that it is GOOD. Sometimes we do not understand why things happen, but if we have patience, we will eventually begin to understand some of it and why things happened the way they did. We just need to believe and love one another and leave it all in God’s Hands. He will lead us, we just need to follow. We love our church and God. Can’t we just all get along. Love is Good.
BE KIND AND DO NO HARM.
The couple who wrote this blog have been together for 18 years, and have been members of Westover Hills UMC for most of that time. Because of the challenges they may encounter in the workplace, they have chosen to offer this blog anonymously.