Wednesday, March 23, 2011

St. Patrick's Day and SHS Theater

Last week I had two life experiences that reminded me of the biblical theme of creation, fall, and redemption. We made our annual pilgrimage to Savannah for St. Patrick's Day on Thursday. It's always an opportunity to see family, old friends, and meet new people. We decided this year that we would watch most of the parade from a fixed point with chairs, snacks, etc. It sorta worked out okay. I made my way to the parade route around 8 AM to reserve a spot. We spent the better part of the first 3 hours of the parade watching and enjoying the scenery. The celebratory aspect reminds me that as Christians we have the privilege of celebrating the redemptive work of Christ each day not just on set days and festivals. The life of St. Patrick is a reminder to us as Christians in a post-modern context to meet people where they are with the bold truth of the gospel!

There is ample opportunity for truth to be proclaimed, not with a bullhorn and a sign like one street evangelist I saw, but with a simple, quiet, uncompromising way we can live out the gospel story so that it impacts the lives of the people we come in contact with at a parade, at work, at home, even at church. Among the throngs of people enjoying the festivities one was reminded of the beauty of creation with the majestic oaks and Spanish moss of Savannah, the fall of humanity with the excesses present all around, and the mysterious work of the Holy Spirit to redeem all of creation for the glory of God.

Friday I went to see some of my students present The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe at Statesboro High School. They all did a fantastic job of presenting C.S. Lewis' beloved story that vividly presents the theme of the gospel more clearly than most churches on Sunday morning. It struck as I watched that you had students in the play and people in the audience who would actually miss the whole story that Aslan and his friends enact as creation, fall, and redemption are told in magical ways.

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