The will of God

Lauras pot plants got deluged last evening when a storm blew through town, my gas grill even moved down the back walk in the wind.

How do you know if you are in the will of God? It is a very hot topic among the young who are trying to make decisions or those who have been forced to make decisions by life, those who are at a crossroad. We want to know that the direction we choose will lead to blessing and fulfillment.

The last decade or so I have been living among the retired, the aging, and the dying. When you consider the fact that I came west with the hope of being among the cutting edge of church planting folks, the young, the pioneering, and the hipsters of the faith, it would seem like I had taken a wrong turn somewhere.

Been reflecting on the possibility that the American Dream that everyone with hard work and dedication can make it in this country. I still hear folks talking a lot about it. But I also hear the other side, and see the hard facts that huge employment sectors that once provided income for all the sweet families like my who grew up in 1400 sq ft homes in suburbia do not in fact exist, and that the gaps between the haves and have nots is growing, and that the middle class incomes are shrinking precipitiously into the area of working poverty. And the images that stream from once prosperous Detroit only add to the shock.

The folks in my present home made plans, saved money, paid into social security, and although the widows are on tight budgets, they all seem to be making ends meet modestly. Some folks in the generation just a bit above me have done very well, and are able to pass on money and business to their children. The American dream. Many worked for large corporations and have generous private pensions.

Don't have any conclusions to this post except to say that time runs out for all of us sooner or later, and the will of God has much more to do with loving and serving Him and the world than it does about our lifestyle or the size of our church. The world may be taking us on a ride where none of us wants to go, where endurance may be more important that prosperity.