"true" is an Aveda salon/spa in the West Cobb Avenue near my home and that fact will interest some of you  more than me. There really isn't anything in there for me. They don't sell baseball caps, golf balls, or any best sellers among their many displays of lotions and creams. In fact, I had never been inside the doors until recently. But I have twin six-year-old granddaughters and recently we visited the Avenue and, of course, "true." And there are lots of things in "true" that interest little girls.

    The ladies in "true" were especially nice to the girls, who were allowed to test several kinds of skin cream (aroma, texture, etc.) until they chose just what they wanted. Then the purchases were put in pretty bags with even prettier tissue paper (different paper for different girls) and tied with neat bows. They carried their purchases out of the store like the elegant young ladies they can be and, even in late morning, we had already had a good day. One of the girls commented, "They were nice in there."

    And therein is the lesson for the day. "They were nice in there." Someone in "true" knows something about marketing and even more about human nature. Kindness changes people and changes situations. Most of us have a great deal on our minds at any moment. Most of us have a great concern ("Be kind. Everyone you meet is bearing a great burden." Philo of Alexandria). The economy is tough, a friend let us down, the marriage is in trouble, the test is next Friday, and the list goes on and on. And then someone is kind. They smile or let us out in traffic. Someone holds a door or is kind to our parents or to our children. And the world, for a moment, is more
tolerable.

    "Nice" is particularly important in the church. Oh, we'll have our conversations about the interpretation of scripture and about social policy, but one of our principal products is kindness. We speak to one another. We hold doors and share hymnals and slide over for latecomers. We are even willing to learn names, share thoughts, and bear burdens together. We want to be nice.

   The late great sportswriter Furman Bisher once wrote, "I am thankful for people who are nice to my children." The theologian-medical doctor-musician-missionary Albert Schweitzer wrote, "More people are won to faith by simple human kindness than by any other virtue." Jesus said, "Love one another." Any of the three could have worked at "true."

    And I'll see you this Sunday. Until then, be nice.

VBS and Summer Camp online registration is open!  Visit the MFUMC Web site for details about the Summer of Wonders!  There are a variety of camps for ages nursery  through 5th grade.  Contact Kelly Duncan with any questions. (Georgia Rambo, ext. 7805) 

April 23: Meatballs with creamy dill sauce or grilled tilapia, egg noodles, mixed vegetables, okra, corn and tomatoes, salad bar, rolls and desserts. Kids: Hamburger or cheeseburger, tater rounds, salad bar and desserts 

Congregational Care  

Music 

  Children  

Youth 

Scouts  

Women  

Men  

Senior Adults  

Missions  

Christian Education