Hope

This is a gloomy time of year. The days are shorter, there is a chill in the air and COVID-19 still hangs in the air. There is hope in the air, carried by the news of a vaccine as a new year approaches.

Hope is the theme of the First Sunday of Advent. The prophet Isaiah told his divided nation, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” (Isaiah 9:2)

Israel to the north would be crushed by the Assyrians; the people were scattered. To the South, Judah would be carried away to Babylon; their Temple destroyed but Isaiah told them of the promised Messiah, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)

America has faced gloomy times before. Each time we bounced back stronger than before. The Civil War killed more soldiers than WWI and WWII combined. In the aftermath, slavery was abolished and the reunited nation became the world's strongest economy. We emerged from the Great Depression and WWII as a global economic and political leader.

By the grace of God we have survived pandemics, terrorist attacks, riots, economic downturns and more but the ups and downs of America are but a flash in the pan in the history of God's work with humanity. God is in control and is moving towards an end where he will be glorified.

My hope this First Sunday of Advent echoes the words of Paul: “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” (Romans 8:18)

The road to revival

In 100 AD there were 25,000 Christians in the world. By 310, there were 20 million. Christianity became the dominant religion of Rome even though they were largely an underground without political power or centralized structure. Somehow they managed to turn a hostile government to their favor.

Fast forward to the 20^th Century. Mao Zedong wants to purge China of all Western influence, including Christianity. He deported foreign missionaries and ministers, took ceased all church property, killed all senior leaders and outlawed church gatherings. At this time the church had been well-established in China with two million members. When contact with the Western world was re-established in the 80's the Chinese church had grown to 60 million. At the dawn of the 21^st Century membership grew to 80 million.

Like the early church, they lacked professional clergy, formal training and centralized organization. Also, like the early church, they operated underground moving person to person. Neither movement tried to enact legislation that required nonbelievers to behave like Christians. Neither movement tried to gain political power

In his book, “The Forgotten Ways,” Alan Hirsh observes that revivals begin on the fringes of society among the poor and marginalized. It seldom (if at all) starts at the center. In fact, when the institutional church begins its inevitable decline, there is usually a vibrant grass-roots movement forming.

The established church in America wants to reach the middle class, family values types; the “soccer moms.” Most churches are competing for this segment. The result is that only 18% of the US population attend church. What about the other 82%? What about the 40% of San Antonians who claim no religious belief; the “nones?”

The contemporary church growth movement sought to make it easy for people to go to church. Recommendations included sticking to your own people group, using music that appeals to your demographic, parking lot attendants, and excellent children & youth programs. No cross bearing nor sacrifice. Forty years later, church attendance decline continues.

George Barna predicts, in “Revolution,” that the church will lose 50% of its attendance in the first quarter of the 21^st Century. COVID-19 may have accelerated and increased the decline. In 2008, The Christian Century (5/6/08) reported that 3700 churches close every year. These tend to be inner city and rural churches but also include failed new church starts.

Hirsh recommends reseeding an established church with new, grass-roots folks who will respect the needs of the old guard. Perhaps several new church starts and/or parachurch groups can share space paying rent to help with the utilities and maintenance.

Frank Tillapaugh, in “Unleashing the Church,” states that we need a marriage between the established church and the parachurch. I would replace the term “parachurch” with any organization that is doing Kingdom work, even those that don't identify as faith-based.

We need to get back to the methodology that helped the early church, the 20^th Century Chinese church, and many others to become disciple making machines. There is no short cut; no easy way. There is only people who know going to people who need to know Jesus.

Foot washing today

Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things,you will be blessed if you do them. John 13:14-17 (NIV)

In John 13 we read that Jesus washed the disciple's feet. An unpleasant but ordinary task usually performed by a servant. Jesus set the example for all of us who call ourselves His followers. Churches that practice foot washing today have turned into a religious ritual that could be missing the point. The story below is a demonstration of humility and service that illustrates Jesus' point. It is taken from the journal of one of our deacons.

A day of ministry…

About 3:45 pm I got a call from a disabled woman. She thinks she might have a dead rat in her house. My husband and I arrived at 4:30 pm. When we walked in the door we could smell the dead rat, plus lots of dog feces in 2 of the 3 bedrooms.

My husband picked up the glue trap in the bedroom (with dead rat attached,) disposed of it and, then, picked up all the dog feces in the house.

I talked with the disabled woman while picking up lots of trash in the floor of her bedroom  and put her mattress cover in the washing machine, while my husband mopped the 2 dog-poop rooms, the bathroom, and the hallway.

I pulled the kitchen trash bag out the container, which smelled like dead rat. I looked in and there was a rat in the bottom of the container – I screamed! Then my husband looked inside discovered two rats in there – a dead one, and a live one that was eating the dead rat’s head. He took the container outside, killed the live one, and threw them both away. I washed out the kitchen trash can.

Next, we mopped the bedroom because there was a trail of diarrhea on the floor. I sat and listened to the woman while my husband washed her dishes.

I put out a fresh bowl of water for her dogs, swept up all the rat feces in the kitchen floor, then mopped it.

We went to the corner store to get her some Gatorade and, then, moved her laundry from the washer to the dryer. 
 
After dinner at Whataburger, we went to Walmart to buy a 2 weeks supply of Gatorade and more rat traps for the woman we are helping (she always gives me her debit card when I shop for her).  When we delivered it to her house, I got the sheets and mattress pad out of the dryer and made her bed while my husband set out 8 rat traps in the house.

I think we left her house around 8:30 pm.

Verily I say unto you,
Inasmuch as ye have done it unto
one of the least of these my brethren,
ye have done it unto me.
Matthew 25:40 (KJV)

Note: This disabled woman is currently undergoing chemotherapy. She is unable to walk her dogs and, so, they often do their business inside but they are her only companions. Baptist Temple is seeking ways to help her in her time of need.