With a nod to my friend andcolleague Rev. Tim Brewer, I’d like to share with you an article he published inthe December 25, 2009 issueof The Witness, our conferencenewspaper.

Thesetimes, they are a changing

            I like to collect interesting itemsfrom previous eras. I have a “candle stick” phone without a dial, dated 1915.For those who don’t watch old movies, you picked up the ear piece and tapped onthe arm that held the ear piece and the operator answered. That phone worked great when there were just a few phones in town and oneperson could handle the work.  As thework load increased, the phone company came up with the rotary dial so thephone would not depend on one person. As electronics improved, the rotary dialwas replaced by the touch tone. Then came the cellphone (about the size of a notebook) and the phone no longer needed to beattached to a phone line. Now I have a cell phone that fits in my pocket but itis fairly simple and will not to all the texting and internet work that I wouldlike to be able to do. Who would have dreamed that we would go from an operatorto texting in 100 years?

            The point is that the world does notstand still. The future comes on us whether we are ready or not. Change isinevitable. Will we be ready for it? How will we respond? We can lament that wedo not use rotary phones or we can figure out how to best utilize the newtechnology to accomplish our purposes. The world is changing around the church.Will we be able to communicate the gospel in a way relevant to people who arequite at home in this new world?

            “Boofest”and “Veggie Tales” are two attempts to reach people who might not otherwiseeven consider church as a possibility. Let’s come up with other ideas and programs. Let’s invite, invite,invite. And be open to where the Spirit might lead us, even if it makes us alittle uncomfortable.

Myfriends, I think you and I can relate to what Tim is saying here. The worldwill continue to change, with or without us. The people of God will continue tohunger and thirst for the Word of God and the people who have no relationshipwith God will continue to be in need of hearing the Good News.  Travis Clark just helped me get my Facebook page set up, something I thought I’d never do.(Thanks, Travis!) But the world moves on and so must we if we are to befaithful disciples of Jesus Christ. Thanks be to Godfor the opportunity to do so!