"Open Hearts. Open Minds. Open Doors."

The United Methodist Church started a campaign in 2001 to help bring new light to the denomination.  "Open Hearts. Open Minds.  Open Doors." has worked to welcome new members into our congregations and to make sure we are open to meeting people where they are.

As I am living in Haiti this summer I have felt this unbelievable calling to model radical hospitality.  The motto of my church home is ringing through my ears every minute of every day.  Am I welcoming others into this shared space?  Am I truly honoring and respecting each person for who they are and where they are in their life journey?  Am I am sensitive to the needs of others?  Do I really take the time to see people and do they know how much I really want to hear their stories and be in community with them?

Most challenging for me is knowing how and when to stand up to injustice that happens in small ways each and every day.  This daily challenge can seem like a mountain that is too tall to climb.  This is not just a problem in Haiti, but it seems god has chosen my time here to refine my threshold and tolerance for not loving your neighbor as yourself.  I am finding it challenging to know what to say, when to say it and most of all, if I should say it.

My go to solution for most things is to attempt to show others another way, to lead by example and hope they will take notice and develop an interest in changing their own behavior.  You might call that passive aggressive, and I would agree.  Anyone that knows me knows that I am not a big fan of conflict and would prefer if we all just got along!

However, now is the time.  God has placed me here, in this position to empower and liberate in the only way I know how - radical love and a commitment to bring a voice to those who need to be heard.  My constant prayer is from Isaiah 61:
 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because God has appointed me to set at liberty those who are oppressed and proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.

For those Celtic Woman fans out there - I have also been relishing in a song called "One World."
Here are the lyrics and now my daily prayer:
"We're all apart of one world. We all can share the same dream.  And if you just reach out your hand than you will find deep down inside your just like me!"

Please remember in your daily comings and goings out of people's lives that god values and loves each one of us and that we are called to do the same...no matter what.