“No Fear”
The Corona Pandemic seemingly has the world in it's grasp. What we all considered to be our "normal" way of life last year is gone. Will it ever return? Will there be school this Fall? What about work? What about the Hospitality Industry that is so important to our area?
And what about sports? I know that many tend to think, "it's just sports", but the truth is sports play a much larger role in the life of our National economy than just the exorbitant salaries of the athletes themselves. Think about the vendors of concessions inside the stadiums, and the stores and restaurants and hotels that provide services to people who enjoy attending and watching the games. But now, even without the presence of fans, the Major League Baseball season seems to be collapsing, and who knows what's going to happen with the College Football and the NFL seasons?
All of this just touches the surface of how our world is changing. You've seen it, and you're living it in many more ways than this. And maybe you're actually starting to get used to all this change - which might actually make some sense. Humans, after all, are the most adaptable species to ever roam this planet. We all say we hate change, but history proves that people can pretty much adapt to and handle whatever life throws at us.
One of the places where Pandemic-induced change is happening is The Church. Little of what we thought we knew about how to "do" church now remains intact.
But The Church might be the one place where we resist change more than in any other aspect of life. We kind-of like Church the way it is [or, now, "the way it was"]. We knew what to expect; we knew what was going to happen; it was a place where we were simply comfortable.
And, perhaps there is at least some justification for our resistance to change in The Church. We can all quote Hebrews 13:8 - "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever." If Jesus doesn't change, His Church shouldn't change either, right?
Let's be careful here. Jesus doesn't change, and His Gospel doesn't change. But, this verse does not tell us that The Church must never change. In fact, His Church - or at least the way His people "do" church - has always changed. Sometimes, The Church is right out in the open - enjoying the favor of all the people as the church in Jerusalem did when it was young. But sometimes, The Church does not have the favor of the people, or the government, and it must go underground, as The Church literally did in Rome during the horrendous persecutions by some of the Emperors in the second Century when Christians gathered in the catacombs. Clearly, the way church was "done" differed greatly in those circumstances. And, there have been many other changes through the centuries.
Now, perhaps more than ever in our lifetimes, The Church must not fear change. Change is coming; change is already here. Now, perhaps more than ever in our lifetimes, The Church needs to be seeing the new dreams and visions The Holy Spirit has for us. The past is gone, and what worked in the past may no longer be an option.
And, although this really hasn't changed, now, perhaps more than ever in our lifetimes, The Church needs to pray with and for each other, and love each other, and bear with each other, and carry each other through the changes that are here and the changes that are coming. We will either do that, or we will become irrelevant at the very moment the world needs The Church, perhaps more than ever in our lifetimes.
That is really the choice we must make. May we choose wisely.
~Shepherd Ambrose Ramsey