Meditations with Pastor Tom (5/15/20)

"“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ~ Mark 12:31  

I don't like masks.  I find them uncomfortable, especially as it get warmer outside.  They make it harder for people to hear each other, and my hearing is not all that good in the first place.   I especially dislike that they make people seem so remote.  You can't show emotions or read others' emotions when faces are covered.  But, when I go out, I still wear one.  Here's why:

~ As a pastor, I believe in the importance of my witness and my place as a role model.  I believe my wearing a mask says that I care about more than own safety.  I care about yours, too.  I am modeling my Christ-like concern for others.

~ Jesus calls us love our neighbor as ourselves.  I believe wearing a mask is an act of loving my neighbor as myself.

~  Jesus constantly urged us to care for the most vulnerable - the least of these.  In wearing a mask, I am trying to follow Jesus.

~ I have risk factors myself.  I am above 60; I am substantially overweight; I have some allergies, and I have had heart issues.  I want to take care of myself, and not just for my own self-preservation.  I have a responsibility to my wife and my children to take precautions.

~ I am your pastor, and I serve more than just the local church.  For all the ways I serve, however humble they may be, I need to stay healthy.  This is not about ego.  It is about fulfilling the mission that I am called to.

~ Even if all the infectious disease specialists are wrong and the masks are not helpful, I have lost nothing.  However, if they are right, I may have saved a life. 

I am not telling anyone what to do.  That wouldn't do any good anyway.  I am just sharing my witness.  I pray that you will lovingly receive my witness and make the most Christ-like decision for yourself.

The Sermon this Sunday

Two opposites sides of Jesus' commandment to love.