As most of you know, I have been traveling. We have traveled through Iowa seeing my cousins, some of which have been very sick. We just got word that one is finally at home recovering after an extended hospital stay. We then went to Dyersville, Iowa where they filmed the movie Field of Dreams. After a trip up the Mississippi River Road, we went into Minnesota where we spent over a week seeing the sights.

Before we left home, our daughter Tara told me she was going to make up some bags to hand out to the homeless and people in need we saw along the way. She filled the bags with bottles of water, flavor packs for the water, cookies, crackers, chips, granola bars, and small notes of encouragement. The reactions we got from the recipients were mixed. The first gentleman was sitting outside a convenience store with his dog. The first thing he did was read the note. At another store a person came up to us asking for money. We told her we had a goody bag and held it out for her. She said she just wanted money. Another bag we handed out to a mother holding up a sign while her children sat in the nearby shade was taken with a word of thanks. The children right away opened the bag and began to explore the treats inside with big smiles on their faces.

My point in telling these stories is: we don’t know how our acts of kindness will be accepted and it is not our place to judge. We don’t know other people’s circumstances and don’t need to know. What we do need to do is offer God’s love to all his children without expectations or judgment but with love.

Show God’s love to all his children at every opportunity just like you want God to show his love to you.

Pastor Steve