Keeping the Faith

One of my favorite cable TV channels is The History Channel. When The History Channel first started, or when I first started watching it, my wife referred to it as “All Nazis, all the time.” That was because it seemed that THC aired nothing but documentaries about the Second World War. There are just so many documentaries that THC can air about the Second World War. THC now shows a variety of programs that have a very tenuous relationship to history. THC is no longer “All Nazis, all the time.”
One of my favorite shows on THC is a fascinating program called “Life After People”. This program shows what would happen to the world if every single man, woman and child were somehow or other magically removed from planet earth.
One recent episode of the series was titled “Capital Threat”. This program showed how without human beings to care for the Capital, the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument would all basically collapse within five hundred years. Weeds, grasses, trees and other plants would take over the National Mall in Washington in a matter of years. The great reflecting pools in the nation’s capital would become swamps where fish, turtles and frogs would take up residence. Computer animations showed the Capital collapsing.
Other episodes in the series have shown great buildings, bridges and damns literally falling down from the effects and onslaughts of nature. If human beings weren’t around to scrap the rust off and repaint the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco the mighty bridge would fall into the bay within a couple hundred years. Because plants and vegetation would grow unchecked around the world just about every home would eventually be smothered in a carpet of green. Cars left on streets and highways would eventually totally and completely rust away and then the rust would be washed away by rain and snow.
The show is fascinating to watch. The special effects are really quite incredible. The implication of the show is that given enough time nature would utterly and completely erase every single mark of human presence on planet earth. Eventually even the mighty pyramids in Egypt would be blasted into nothingness by the relentless sand storms.
I couldn’t sleep the other night so I got up and watched an episode of “Life After People”. Sitting in front of the TV I was struck with the ongoing care that people must give to the things they create and care for lest they disappear. Watching the Golden Gate fall made me think about something else as well. It got me to thinking about our Christian Faith. Our faith is something that needs to be nurtured and cared for just like the buildings that human beings have created.
By watching the program I’ve learned that even the mightiest structures that humans have made are finally pretty fragile when you get right down to it. If the Golden Gate isn’t scrapped and repainted the rust will eat it up and it will collapse.
What happens to you and me when we don’t care for and nurture the Christian Faith? What will happen to us if we stop reading our Bibles? What will happen to us if we neglect prayer? How will our lives be if we stop coming to worship and receiving the sacrament?
Our life in Jesus Christ is something that we must care for and nurture. I read the Bible, I pray and I come to worship not because God will cast me off if I don’t do those things, no, I do those things because by praying, reading the Bible, coming to worship and receiving the sacrament I am maintained in the faith.
“Life After People” has taught me about the importance of maintenance for the welfare of the things that human beings have created. If roads are not properly maintained and neglected cracks will appear in them, weeds and trees will begin to grow and the road will finally be reduced to rubble and in a time disappear.
If I don’t stay connected into Jesus through prayer, Bible reading and study, attendance at worship and reception of the sacrament I will become like a neglected and badly maintained road; cracks will appear in my life, the weeds of sin will sprout up in my life and my life will be reduced to a rubble of sorts for I will no longer be connected to Jesus Christ who cares for me, nurtures me and maintains me when I seek Him out in prayer, Bible reading and study, attendance at worship and reception of the sacrament.
It is easy for us become unconnected to Jesus Christ and the faith. During the summer months this is especially true. There are vacations taking place; being outside looks more attractive to us than coming to worship. We get busy with all kinds of admittedly fun things. But, there is that danger of getting unconnected with Jesus and the faith and that can have profound effects in our lives.
During the summer months stay connected to Jesus through worship here at St. John. If you are going to be out of town on Sunday morning come to worship here on Wednesday nights. We are starting our new “Sundaes on Wednesdays” program to help you keep your connection with Christ during the summertime. (You can read more about “Sundaes on Wednesdays” at the conclusion of this article.)
Yet, getting disconnected from the Christian Faith is not something that happens only during the summer months. It is a danger to us every single day of our lives. What would happen if those people who maintain airplanes didn’t do their jobs for a couple of days? Airplanes would begin to fall out of the skies, that’s what would happen. What will happen to you if you don’t pray? If you don’t read and study the Bible? If you don’t attend worship and receive the sacrament? Will your life be better? Will your connection with Jesus be strong? I don’t think that I have to even provide the answers to those questions.
The Christian Faith is something that we need to maintain in our lives. Just as people need to maintain and care for the Golden Gate Bridge we too need to maintain and care for the faith that is in us. With God’s help we can remain strong in the faith and in our connection with Jesus Christ when we pray, read and study the Bible, attend worship and receive the sacrament.