July 29, 2020
Leadership Notes
It was a headline that sort of made me sad. From MLive, July 27, 2020:
"Ice cream shop owner wants customers to stop yelling at staff over mask requirement."
Yep, you read that right. Some customers got so unruly, police had to be called. The owner took to social media to plead with people to be decent to her employees. Imagine treating teenagers working a summer job that way! I thank God Covenant Church people are all about spreading kindness.
I don't have any heroes. I'm not big on hero worship. A little too idolatry-ish for me. Dr. Thomas Sowell is one who comes close. He celebrated his 90th birthday last month. As part of the great black migration from south to north during the 1930s and 40s, Sowell's family moved to Harlem, New York. He was a Marine and then, ultimately, earned a Ph.D. from the economics department at the University of Chicago.
Here's the funny thing about Dr. Sowell. For most of his college days, he considered himself a Marxist. Later, he came to realize that free markets are the best way, especially for disadvantaged people. Many consider Dr. Sowell to be the American version of Austrian economist Friedrich Hayek (whose book, "The Road to Serfdom" ought to be required reading in every American high school}. I highly encourage you to read anything and everything you can find by Thomas Sowell.
Speaking of books, Bible reading has declined during this current pandemic. So, a caveat would be the Bible and Sowell. But the Bible first.
It seems every generation defines what normal is…and normal is whatever they are experiencing/embracing. We know things change. That's what life is about. Change. And God is the God of change. He is God of the living, not the dead. "Behold, I am making all things new." There is always going to be a new normal, normal being everything changes. Except God. And as everything around us changes, as long as we are living within the unchanging truth of God's Word, all will be well.
No doubt you've heard about what's going on in California this summer. The governor has banned all church gatherings. Some churches are responding with civil disobedience. In light of Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2, what would you do? All things being relative, I'm thankful for our governor and her rational and seasonable approach to church gatherings. She's not the best and she's not the worst, which you can pretty much say about me, too. So yes, I think she's doing a decent job in a horrible circumstance. As you know, I leave arm chair quarterbacking to the amateurs.
Finally, Thom Rainer's recent email contained an article, "Ten Reasons Why Your Church Members Are Ornery in the Pandemic." Didn't click it to open; didn't care to read it. That has been the farthest from our experience here at Covenant Church. We are a resilient people whose trust in Jesus Christ transcends any earthly problems. I love your contributions to this scrappy little church.
Be of Good Cheer,
Richard