Refiner’s
Fire . . .
The future is coming. Rapid social change is on the horizon and
ready or not, here it comes. Parents use
to say when I was growing up they had to walk to school five miles and it was
uphill both ways. Recently, I heard
myself saying, “we went to school when there were no
computers except in school computer labs, written in dos.” For you young people, dos pre-dated Windows
technology. Cell phones weren’t even
marketed when we were teenagers. Now the
latest technology will allow you to buy and sell stocks from your cell phone
using digital technology.
I can’t think of a more exciting time
in history to live. Those who know
technology plus those who remember the challenges of the past offer a rich
opportunity for the present. Knowledge
doubles every few weeks. It took more
than 1500 years to double once after the life of Christ. 300 years after that and less with each
century since. From the super highway of
information to the hard earned lessons of the past, it’s amazing that we can
love each other. Still people want
similar things. They want to love and be
loved, to feel safe, to provide for their physical needs, to have a sense of
worth, and to believe they are accomplishing some self development that reaches
inner potentials. (Paraphrase of Maslow’s Hierarchy
of Needs, not in order.)
Christ had his ministry right in the middle of one of the
most rapidly changing environments in history; Erosion of the Jewish church;
invasion of the Roman Army and their occupation; devaluing of the societal values provided by
the Synagogues’ leadership; and the
arrival of the Savior of the World. How
do you identify which voice to listen to when they say different things? One voice says be safe; another says take
care of number one; another says love is all you need; another, stand for something
or fall for anything; and another says, be all you can be. Jesus says, “Peace be
with you. Love God with all your heart,
mind and soul, and your neighbor as yourself.
…forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us;
lead us not into temptations, but delivery us from evil; for Thine is the Reign, forever and ever.” It is a conversation we start with ourselves
and end with God. Ready or not, here it
comes. What will you do?
Dr. Stanley Spence