Confidence

July 10, 2018

These people never stop amazing me! This morning, the Dunkirk church board met to review the plans for Saturday’s 100th anniversary of the dedication of our building. We packaged prizes, reviewed plans, made adjustments, attended to all those details that can make or break such an event. At one point as we worked, my ears pricked up and heard, “Next year...” Can you believe it? We haven’t even had the party yet and they’re already talking about next year! I LOVE their faith! 

St. Paul tells us that “not many wise...not many mighty, not many noble are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in his presence” (1 Corinthians 1:26-29). 

There aren’t many of us, most of us are old, some might look at us and count us down. We may be down, but we aren’t out. If God were done with us, the doors would already be shuttered and locked, but here we are...still. I’m beginning to think we are like Gideon’s army which God needed to thin out to ridiculous extremes so they would know beyond a shadow of a doubt that whatever victory they would enjoy was solely the work of God. Right now we’re somewhere between Good Friday and Easter Sunday morning. The resurrection of this congregation hasn’t yet happened, but it’s coming, and I want to be a part of it. So I am thanking God in advance as an act of faith for these people he has placed in my life, and for the miracle he is already working through them. The seed has been planted; it’s still hidden in the soil, but it is going to break through, and when it does, you’ll hear my praise shouted from the housetop. I’ll take it further and shout it from the church tower! I may not even wait for the seed to sprout...