One of the great perks that comes from teaching and preaching is that, as I study and prepare lessons and sermons, I find myself exposed to the thoughts of truly wise thinkers.  I’d like to say that this helps me to become wise myself, but that might be stretching things a bit.  Perhaps it’s closer to the truth to say that being exposed to the wisdom of others is not a bad thing – some of it just might rub off.  And, as a matter of fact, it occasionally happens that I find myself being bright enough to actually write down some of the wisdom that I come across so that I won’t immediately forget what I have seen.  Then, of course, one needs to be sharp enough to occasionally go back and re-read what you have written down to be reminded of wisdom again.

And, I did just that today.  I was thinking about our church.  I’d like to say that I was thinking in terms of “The Church” – you know, the Global Church, the total Kingdom of God here on Earth.  But regretfully, most of the time, that’s a concept that is too big for me.  No, I usually, and perhaps selfishly, find my thoughts being consumed with just our church – just our tiny little outpost of The Kingdom of God located here on the Northshore of Lake Pontchartrain.  I found myself thinking about, and wondering about, how the effects of The Pandemic are going to be felt in our church, and what is going to happen to the ability of our church to carry out its mission, and will we even make it through all this.  

 Even as consumed as I am with our Theme of “Vision 2020”, I find it difficult to “see” beyond the very obvious – that our “smallness” and our “weakness” make us particularly vulnerable to the problems and dangers that accompany this Pandemic.  We know that, economically, many businesses will not survive the challenges being brought to bear by Corona.  In fact, I just heard today that “K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen”, that amazing restaurant created by the famous Chef Paul Prudhomme, is closing forever.  That’s a blow to the culture of New Orleans and to this entire area.  If Corona can bring an end to such a legendary place, how can anyone feel safe?

As I was wondering about this, I happened to take a look back through my recordings of some of the wise thoughts I have collected.  Listen to this quote from a preacher and writer named Mark Batterson: “We tend to think ‘right here, right now’.  God is thinking Nations and Generations.  We think that what God does for us is for us.  But it’s never just for us.  He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  What He does for us is for the future too.  Each prayer, gift, sacrifice, and step of faith we take is an inheritance left to the next generation.”  

Maybe I’m the only one who finds my vision limited to the “here and now”.  The questions I tend to ask – “What was our attendance?, How much was the contribution?”, etc., are not really the right questions.  Those questions aren’t big enough.  Those questions focus on “here and now”, when God’s focus is so different.    

Do you ever consider the future?  Not just tomorrow, or next week, or next Christmas, but the actual future?  Isn’t it wonderful to realize that our God’s vision stretches far into the future?  Isn’t it comforting to realize that the plans God has for the next generation, and for future generations of His Church, are actually dependent on the plans He has for the present generation, and on Him strengthening and providing for the present generation so that the plans He has for the next and future generations can and will be accomplished?  He holds the future in His hand, and that means He holds us in His hand right now.

Does that change how we should think about what it is we are doing as an outpost of The Kingdom of God on the Northshore of Lake Pontchartrain?  Can we “see” that everything we do, or actually, everything The Lord is doing in and through us, is an inheritance left for the next generation?  Each gathering, each class, each prayer, each Communion, each gift, each conversation, each effort made, each blessing, each song – all the things that I so often take for granted, or even stumble right past without a second thought just to get through today – all become precious and holy because they are the very inheritance we leave to the future.  And so each of these things become worthy of our best, don’t you think?  

Lord, open our eyes.         

Ambrose K. Ramsey III

Shepherd