How many times have we heard, “You reap what you sow”? I do not think there are many people living in this country, or anywhere else for that matter, who have not been told this at one time or another. I think that we have heard this so often that we do not always examine what it really means. We all understand the fundamental meaning behind it, but we often forget to apply it to every situation that we encounter as we walk this journey called life. I know that I have often failed to heed these words, and I am not much different than the rest of the world, so I think it is fairly safe to say that many of us forget to apply the meaning behind the words that have been engrained in us since we were children.

I, like all of you, have been watching the events that have been unfolding in our country and around the world during the last few months. I have read article after article giving credit to both sides. I have read Facebook posts where people have expressed their beliefs, and I have then seen the reign of dissension that has been poured down on someone for expressing his or her point of view. This behavior occurs on both sides of the issue. I do not think I have ever seen people in our country so divided. I am sure in history there has been a time when the division was as great or even greater, but in my lifetime, I do not think I have ever seen such a wide divide. The great thing about living in the United States of America is that we can all have our own beliefs. We can choose to live our lives the way that we feel we are supposed to live them without fear of retribution from opposing sides. We can express our views without being persecuted for them. At least that is the way that it is supposed to be.

Unfortunately, it seems to me that some of us have forgotten that. I have my beliefs, and I feel very strongly about them. For me, they are the only way that I can live my life with peace in my heart. Other people have different beliefs than I do, and they have to maintain their beliefs to have peace in their hearts. That is okay. It is okay to believe differently. It is okay not to agree. And it is okay to live differently than someone else. However, it is not okay to persecute and hate someone who believes differently, lives differently, or even simply looks different than we do. Love and kindness is a common human emotion that everyone in this world possesses. Compassion and goodness is something that each of us has and can spread throughout our world.

All of us, and I mean all of us, are created in God’s image. God loves everyone. I am going to repeat that again. God loves everyone! He is not a respecter of persons. He does not love me more than He loves you. He does not love the people who live in Illinois more than the people who live in Florida, and He does not love the people who live in America more than the people who live in other parts of the world. God wants the best for all of us, and He speaks to all of us. He is ever present in every single person’s life who lives on this planet. I truly believe that if we could remember that, it would make all of our lives a little easier. I truly believe that if we could all have just a little of the love that God has for us for everyone on the planet that the world would be a better place.

We are never all going to agree. It is just not going to happen, and I do not expect that to happen, but we can still love each other and show respect to each other and show compassion to each other even if we disagree. No man is an island and we all need each other. God created us to be brothers and sisters to all of our fellowmen. He created us to show kindness to the weak of spirit, He created us to show kindness to the misdirected, and He created us to show kindness to even the people we fear. Fear is not from God. Hate is not from God. An inability to accept the differences that we all have is not from God. God is love, God is acceptance, God is compassion, and God is kindness.

We all sow seeds in our lives, and it is up to us to sow the seeds that will grow and do the most good for all of mankind. We can sow seeds of hate, but that is what we will get back. We can sow seeds of fear, but that is what we will get back. We can sow seeds of unacceptance, but that is what we will get back. However, when we sow seeds of love, that is what we get back. When we sow seeds of peace, that is what we will get back, and when we sow seeds of kindness, that is what we will get back. And the thing that we all need to remember is that what we sow into the world always comes back to us in a greater amount than what we put out there. So it is up to all of us to decide what we want back. To me, it is an easy decision, and I am sure you will agree with me.

So let’s all choose to sow seeds of love, acceptance, and kindness, not just for the people who believe like we believe, but also for all of mankind. We are sharing this world and we are meant to stand together. Policies and walls are not going to change this world. Love and acceptance will. When that becomes all of our platforms, there will be more peace on this earth than any of us can imagine and PEACE MATTERS!

~Dan~