May the love that overcomes all differences,
that heals all wounds,
that puts to flight all fears,
that reconciles all who are separated,
Be in us and among us
now and always. Amen.
-Fred Gillis
My daughter, Gili, will turn 1 this week! I have experienced all of the clichés of new parenthood - how quickly this year has gone, how proud I am of this little being, and how much infinite love I am discovering. As Janet talked about on Sunday, loving Gili and wanting her to know how much she is loved reminds me what it means to be human. This powerful love makes me grateful of our interdependence and hopeful about transformation.
Our theme in worship and religious education classes for the month of February is love. With the kids, we will take the opportunity to think about self love, about kindness towards others, and about justice. Many of you are probably familiar with the Cornel West quote, "Justice is what love looks like in public." There are opportunities for people of all ages to learn or take action.
Explore the theme of Love as a family. Talk about what love means to you and all the different ways you see it. Over dinner, have each person share something(s) they love about themselves one night. On other nights, share what you love about each other.
Take on a love project! Send cards to people you love this month or offer to shovel a neighbor's driveway. As a family, you could think of someone you want to reach out to and make them a meal or do something else that they might appreciate.
