The riot is spreading. But not the kind of riot that involves aggression. It is one that involves kindness and giving and love, while asking or expecting nothing in return.

The “Riot of Love and Good Deeds” began a couple of weeks ago as part of a campaign for Tyrone’s Dogwood Church campus development program, said pastor Michael Ray.

“We decided it was not just about the buildings for our congregation,” he said. “We’ve been blessed and we wanted to bless the community. The idea came from a passage in Hebrews that challenged each of us to do good deeds.”

Initially a two-part plan, the church gave the congregation a total of $5,000 one Sunday, in denominations of $1, $5 and $10, along with “Riot” cards with the instruction to go out and do something good for a stranger. The Riot card simply asks the recipient to enjoy the blessing from the Dogwood Church community. The challenge to the congregation was to take a second Riot card and, using an equivalent sum of money of their own, make another action for a stranger.

Ray said the effects of the unexpected blessings is being felt in places and in ways that were unanticipated. Some used the money to purchase gasoline for a trip to the doctor or to buy a meal; others bought a cup of coffee or used the money in a drink machine without punching the button to get a soda. The next person to use the machine got a free drink. One member of the congregation exchanged his dollar for four quarters and left them, along with a Riot card, at a local laundromat for the next person to arrive.

The Riot is now taking on a life of its own, Ray said, and the blessings continue to mount.

“We’re going to let it keep going,” he said. “We’ll keep cards out as long as people keep wanting them.”

The stories of the Riot efforts can be viewed at riotcards.blogspot.com

The selfless actions of the Dogwood congregation also mirrors something said by 19th century English poet William Wordsworth: “That best portion of a good man’s life: All his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and love.”

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