July 2025

So, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.

– 1 Corinthians 10:31

Grace and peace to you! I hope this finds you well in whatever place you are.

As for me, I am currently sitting in our parking lot with two adorable stray dogs wandering around me, occasionally checking to see if I have anymore peanut butter crackers and looking at me  reproachfully when they find I don’t.

I had plans on writing something about summer or the coming events in the church or a reflection on the 100th anniversary, all very normal, but instead I find myself looking at these two dogs and wondering who we are.

Common wisdom says that actions speak louder than words, so our actions say something vital about who we are and how true to ourselves we are being. We are Christians, believers in salvation through the incarnation, death, and resurrection of Christ, and with that identity comes a set of expectations for our actions. These expectations are not required for the identity – we are Christians first without any action of our own – but they stem from a sense of responsibility after being given such a magnificent gift.

So if we are to be followers of Christ as well as Christians, how are we meant to act? Jesus gives us a fairly clear example of how our behavior is to be in the story of the sheep and goats. The actions described there all involve care for the oppressed, the poor, and the lowly. The least of my brothers and sisters, he says. As you did to the least of these, you did to me.

These two dogs are the least of these. They have nothing to offer me. So far they have kept me out of the office – I am sitting in my car as I type this – and once they are picked up by animal services, my time with them will be done.

And yet, care for them is care for those in need. Care for those who I could choose to ignore with no negative consequences. Opening the gate and letting them go would have no social ramifications for me, and since salvation is a gift, it does not hinge on my care of these two animals.

But as a follower of Christ, one dedicated to the care of the least, I am obligated to do what I can for them. Today, that means driving them to the shelter for a place to stay and to receive medical care that I can’t provide, as well as the peanut butter crackers that I could. I am beholden to Christ, and that means going out of my own way, considering the needs of others, so I can follow the example of Christ.

May we all find ways to follow Christ today.

Blessings to you all,

Pastor Rob