History

Our local area is celebrating 150 years of local history this year.  Along with this comes a great deal of extra activities and fun things to do.  We have all heard the expressions about history like, "Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it."  (George Santayana)  Or Karl Marx statement that history repeats itself first as a tragedy and then as a farce.  We think about our own personal histories a lot and most of us are probably not big fans of studying the history of others.  I have observed that the more we move along in history it seems the less we care about it.  The youngest generations seem to have a growing disinterest in what has happened in the past unless it directly comes into contact with how it impacts their life.  We have a growing distrust in history as the belief that it has been written by the winners increases the belief that history is really only one side of a multi-faceted story.

This has impacted the church, and in particular Baptist churches.  We care very little for any history but our own and therefore have converged with society in our concern for history.  And yet the Scriptures are clear that we are to pay attention to history.  We are to learn from the mistakes of Israel as they have been recorded in part for us to avoid repeating them.  Titus tells older men and women to make sure to pass on their information to the younger generations.  We miss some of this in the context of the local church because we have so individualized our faith that we think we have nothing to learn.  I for one am grateful for those who have gone before and done what I am doing and had some success and some failure. I am exceedingly grateful to those who are willing to share their successes and failures with me that I might be a better husband and father and pastor.  I am a better follower of God because of these men and women.  I am more missions minded because of  man named Steve (not my father).  I am more focused on people because of a man named John.  I survived the teen years and lived to tell about it because of the prayer of my Grandmother.  I know more about hospitality from my mother and my mother-in-law.  I know of sacrifice because of the stories of my Grandfather who served in WW2.  And if I disregard these wonderful influences (and there are many more) than I do so to my own disservice.

So who do you have in your life that teaches you history?  Find a few people to add to that list today and you will be better off for it!