Beyond the Times

“The Church always seems to be behind the times, when it is really beyond the times; it is waiting till the last fad shall have seen its last summer.” G.K. Chesterton

In this passage from “The Ball and The Cross” G.K. Chesterton expresses an ideal that rings true to this day. In my walk in ministry and in guiding others to the path of righteousness I have often heard the lament that the church is no longer relevant. It is believed by many that the tradition and the ways of Christianity simply do not fit in today’s age.

There seems to be a misconception in this thought process. We look at Calvary from a wrong perspective. One cannot begin at the point in which they stand and look backward to the cross. Instead, one must look out from the cross to the point in which they now stand. It is from this position that we can see that not only is Christ still relevant, but He has increased in necessity with every passing summer.

Christ, however, is not always the church. Notice the little “c” in that last statement. There are many churches that teach Christ, but due to false teaching will never be part of the Church (big “C”). As this trend grows alongside the fad of immoral attitudes in the people, saved and lost alike, we begin to notice that the sacrifice made on the cross is even more necessary than before. The more sin, acts that oppose God, there are, the more need there is for His perfect intervention.

The Church was created through the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. It was created for a time like ours, a time like our forefathers, and a time like our future generations. Regardless of what fad we follow in our time, or summer if you will, Christ and His Church will always be with us and beyond us. It was certainly created for a time just like today.

Mowing through the Storm

Today’s topic is one of a mundane variety: mowing the lawn. Just this past weekend, Saturday to be exact, I was in quite the mowing predicament. Winds were blowing fiercely through the region, spats of rain were coming and going, and the temperature was a bit to cool to entice anyone outdoors. With all of this occurring at once I sat in my cozy living room putting off the task at hand.

As the dinner hour was upon me I looked at the weather forecast for the next week, starting Monday since I would not mow on a Sunday, and saw that rain was to be anticipated nearly all week. This put me to the realization that it did not matter when I mowed; there would be inclement weather regardless.

So, I rushed to the shed and began my task. Cold, wet (though it was not raining, it was my tears that moistened me), and I want to say tired but that would not be truthful. The mowing was actually pretty easy going, that is until I had to refuel.

After my short pause I doggedly go back at it, when to my surprise (not really) it began to rain. My first thought was to run inside and put off the rest of my lawn until another day. That lasted all of a few seconds. I quickly decided to forge on and at least finish the front section (I couldn’t have my neighbors mock me for my half mowed lawn). As I 'mowed' through the storm something awesome occurred.

The torrential storm , that barely left a puddle, raged for mere minutes before the rain stopped and the sun broke through. I few minutes later I became warm and wanted to remove my jacket. It was like a whole new day. Needless to say, the lawn was finished that day.

In reflection of this usually mundane task I had a revelation. Life in many ways is like mowing your lawn. The storms are coming, and many times you are in one at the time, but you cannot put off the labor of your day. The storms will always be with us, but the fruit can only occur when we push through.

Our Lord promised us that life would not be easy. He promised us that living for the world would get us nowhere. He also promised us that the riches of heaven are awaiting us. So, today let me leave you with this. It does not matter how bad of a storm you see or feel there is always a ‘son’ filled sky on the other side.