Surprise

I remember a time years ago when I made a trip home to visit my parents.  On that visit I found a box filled with some of my father’s personal items.  One of the personal items in the box was an old pair of eyeglasses.  I did not wear glasses at that time in my life.  I thought it would be fun to put the glasses on and see what I looked like in the mirror.  I must admit that I was not ready for what would happen the moment those glasses were put in place on head.  The glasses had some degree of corrective vision in them.  The moment I looked through the lenses of the glasses I began to see details of things in the house that I was not seeing before I had them on.  Over the next minute I would remove and replace the glasses on my head several time just to check to see if details were really more visible with the glasses.  Sure enough, I saw better with my dad's old pair of corrective lenses.

That moment was a bit humbling and at the same time helpful.  I must have gone a long time without ever really knowing my eyesight was getting slowly worse.  It was in that moment I became aware I needed to correct my vision permanently to see what I really needed to see.  I remember seeing details of leaves on trees with my father’s glasses and yet only saw a blurred green blob without them.  We never like to admit that our abilities are not what they once were.

The same can be true for this thing we call church.  We think things are fine and all is right with the world while some correction or needed transformation is necessary for a healthy future.  All organizations and churches need moments in which we examine our sight so we can see clearly into the days that are in front of us. 

It is important that we are clear about our church identity and mission.  It is important that we affirm the values and ministry and help us continue to honor Christ.  It is important that we do this work together and not just a few people.  It is important that we be humble enough to recognize we need God’s help more than we know in shaping our future as Christ’s church.  It is important that we be open enough to make adjustments and enhancements to the ministry we are already doing. 

We do not want to someday realize that we went too long without correcting the visional direction of our work together as a church.  As scripture tells us, “we see in a mirror dimly but then we will see face to face.”  Through prayer and God’s help we will form a future story that will create excitement and hope for us as we live into God’s future.

Grace and Peace,

Rev. Dr. Chris Wilson