Years after the Civil War, someone asked the Confederate General George Pickett, famous for his heroic yet failed “Pickett’s Charge” at Gettysburg, why he thought the South lost. Stroking his beard, pretending to think long and hard, he answered, “Well, I kinda think the Yankees had a little somethin’ to do with it.”

This past Saturday, forty or so Lutherans in our Pinelands Conference gathered here at Joy for a “pre-Reformation” worship. One of the hymns I selected was “Faith of our Fathers”. The newer version we sang contains other references to mothers, sisters and brothers in Christ. It is an acknowledgment that there are other role models that have shaped us in our faith. Even five hundred years ago, could Martin Luther have been as productive without the strong support of his blessed Kate? He had to endure many attacks and came within a hair’s breadth of being hanged for his alleged “heresy”. There have been other influencers on the way of discipleship that have formed and shaped our Lord’s church. The Jesus Movement of the ‘70’s (I must view the recent movie about that). Philip Yancey interviewed one of the musicians at a Christian rock festival. His response:

“Yeah, man, we were really under attack. The Lord was with us in Indianapolis. His Spirit filled the place. So then Satan reached down as we were driving along the road and undid the trailer hitch from our bus. There goes all our amps and instruments, The trip could have ended right then, but God stepped in. He guided that thing so it hit nothing, just coasted to a stop beside the road. We’re back in business, man! The Lord’s business!”

God is always up to something good, different, weird even. I believe He uses the times we are in, adapting to new faith fathers, spiritual directors, musical styles, new and emerging churches. Silas (our parish musician), his wife Melissa and I will continue to pick and introduce new songs that our older congregation may not know so that we can be current and relevant. Our faith fathers did not intend for there to be a lack of innovation and experimentation. Our U.S.A. founding fathers could not have imagined the horrors of civil war, the abolition of slavery, the morphing of single-shot hunting rifles into assault weapons that can fire hundreds of rounds in seconds. Our faith, the law and the gospel will remain unshakable and durable no matter how the world and society evolve. The steadfast, unconditional love of God is given freely so that we can live faithfully in all times and in all places.

Pastor Art