Good morning. We just sang, “I Love to Tell the Story”, a song about enjoying sharing Jesus’ story. That’s what we do at church, isn’t it? We tell God’s story and we think about how we fit into God’s story and how God is part of the story of our lives. I brought a book today to share. It’s called As Good As Anybody, and it’s by Richard Michelson. It’s about two boys who are part of God’s story and the amazing things God can do when we become a family with each other and invite God to be part of our story all together.
Martin was mad at everyone. It was hot in Georgia and Martin wanted to swim in the pool. But the sign said WHITES ONLY. He marched to his father’s church and stomped his feet. “What good is stepping on bugs?” Daddy King said. “You’re looking down when you should be looking up.” His daddy was a preacher. “The way things are is not the way they always have to be. In the next world, people of all colors will live together and respect each other.” Martin didn’t want to wait for the next world, but he knew he couldn’t stay angry. He grew up and became a preacher. He led people to protest peacefully to get laws changed. People tried to stop him but he kept marching. He organized a march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, and he put out a call for all of God’s children to join the march.
A man named Abraham answered Martin’s call, and put his story with Martin’s. God used them to do good things. His daddy had been a rabbi and he grew up to be a rabbi too. He had gone to college in Germany but a man named Hitler became leader and changed the laws. Jewish people couldn’t vote or go to school. He moved back to Poland, and there he found people burning Jewish books. No Jews were allowed to buy food and they couldn’t get work. He heard that America was a place where people were treated fairly. After he moved there, he marched all over, speaking out for peace and equal rights. When he heard about Martin’s march, he decided to join.
On March 21, 1965, Abraham Heschel and Martin Luther King prayed together. They joined hands and they walked. No one could stop them.
When we are willing to share our lives with each other and invite God in, God can do beautiful things!
Let’s pray. Dear God, thank you for making us with all our differences, and for loving each one of us. Help us make each other welcome in our lives and make you welcome too. We love you, God. Amen.
