Devotional 5-2-08

Acts 1:6-14 (with a nod to Acts 9:36-43)

To Joseph, my dear brother in Christ,

It seems like such a long time since we were young together and just beginning to learn about Jesus and what it meant to follow him, to be his disciples. We were inexperienced and hoped that we could do great things for the Lord. I trust that with God's help we have.

I have heard through the other disciples that you are leaving the church which you serve as pastor to go to another one, and that another brother is coming. I thought you, and the church, might need a bit of a reminder of the presence of Christ as you go through these changes. So I have laid aside my needle and picked up a pen instead. Maybe these words will be a help to anyone who is going through changes or times when the future is uncertain, or when we simply have to wait and see what God will do next.

Can you remember those first uncertain days after Jesus left us for the second time? I don't mean the time he died on the Cross. We know that God raised him up again on the third day. No, I'm remembering the uncertainty of all the disciples, both women and men, following His ascension into heaven. He always did exactly what he promised us he would do, but we had a hard time trusting the future and the leading of God.

We didn't know what to do after he truly left us. We returned to Jerusalem to the place where we had been meeting to remember what had happened. It was good to be someplace familiar. This was one thing that had not changed. In the safety of that place, we could meet together to think about the future and our place in it. Do you remember how afraid we were because things were changing so quickly? All we could do in that time of transition was to pray for one another. It seems as I look back, that besides eating and remembering Jesus, all we did was pray. How important the support of friends and family is when we go through any changes big or small

We remembered all of the times when we had been afraid in the past. There were so many times it was hard to wait to see what God would accomplish. We recalled with joy how Jesus appeared to so many of us over the period of 40 days after His resurrection. He even ate with us! Surely since God had accomplished all of this, we could trust God with the future. So over time, we learned to wait in hope. We remembered that the angel who had appeared at the time of Jesus' ascension instructed us to pray and tell people about what we had seen and experienced. That gave us something concrete to do. And God sent the Holy Spirit; the gift that Jesus promised us would come.

All that was long ago and much has happened. I myself am very ill and waiting to see what kind of work God might have for me even during this illness and even my death if I do not get better. But I am learning to trust. God has been with me in the past even when I could not see it. God acted in ways in my life that it took me awhile to understand. Sometimes things seem to make more sense a while after the event has passed. And so I wait.

I am sure that the church which you serve will miss you. I am also sure that they have many question, concerns and fears about the future. Change is so hard. "What will Brother John be like when he comes and in what direction will he lead us?" I can hear them prayerfully asking those questions now.

What I have learned as I continue through life, and as I struggle with so much still, is to trust that God is present in my life and in the lives of us all. That is my prayer for you and your church. Let us remember that we can trust God through the changes that are coming. As we wait, let us do so hopefully and with confidence, not in ourselves, but in the risen Lord.

Your sister in Christ,
Dorcas


Rev. Dorcas Conrad
Dillion Chapel UMC

(Special note -- for those who are not members of Johnson Memorial, our minister, Dr. Joe Shreve, will be appointed to Chapel Hill UMC)