July 1, 2018
“Good morning and welcome to Dunkirk First United Methodist Church! It’s the first of July, which means we are on the downhill slide to winter and Christmas.” With the temperature hovering in the 90s and the humidity somewhere in the stratosphere, Bob’s humor was quite welcome this morning as we began worship. After a day at the beach celebrating our family’s July birthdays, I am sitting on the patio drinking in the fragrance of the woods, the sounds of the creek, and the cool of the evening.
Recently I read an article predicting that in another twenty or so years, more than 70% of the world’s population will live in cities. If such statistical predictions are true, it’s obvious that urban life is the preferred choice of most people, even accounting for the fact that for many, such urbanization is a matter of survival more than a lifestyle choice. I feel sorry for them. Crowded together as people are in apartment complexes, people either bond together or they live in strange isolation. Even as a child growing up in the suburbs, I felt the sterility of neighborhoods where no one really knew their neighbors, and schools were more like warehouses than places where we were prepared for life.
The past year, I’ve been working in a small city, and I’ve come to appreciate the cultural diversity even as I am aware of the very real problems of abuse, addiction, and the breakdown of the family. I was telling my daughter this afternoon that a part of me wishes I had been appointed to Dunkirk years ago; that didn’t happen, but I am there now, and am praying and working hard to learn so we can effectively reach our neighborhood for Jesus. I really do have the best of two very different worlds, and tonight I thank God for the beauty and peacefulness of my country retreat as I gear up for another week of opportunity in the city. Tomorrow, I will give thanks for those opportunities that come our way, and pray to see them clearly that I might take full advantage of all God offers for the glory of his Name.
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