There are 7 billion 480 million people on our planet as I write this article. The number keeps rising rapidly. It is easy to feel lost in the crowd when we think of how many there are sharing this space. Does anybody see us as an individual? Does anybody care?
Then again, when you are part of tens of thousands of people at an event, whether it is a sporting event, rally or a demonstration, you can feel energized. You are sharing a spirit in common with many others. You are adding your spirit to the group spirit and that matters.
This apparent paradox is seen in the ways people of faith go about their worship rituals and the rules they accept for governing their lives. Some faith traditions center their theology in a very personal “God in my heart” even while they pray by lifting up their hands to a transcendent being. Others center their theology in a God who is “the Highest”, the “Almighty” and do very personal acts of prayer and devotion as if the Almighty is aware of any slip in their required rituals. We are both so small and insignificant that God does not need us in the least, yet God does not overlook us either.
In the UCC you can hear that no matter who you are you are important to us and to God, and at the same time the church is greater than any one person. The bridge between these truths is in the relationships we build in the local church. The ones who can assure that we are important to God and to this world are the ones whose names and faces we know. The ones who connect us to the wider church are those who we select as our representatives to
different organizations, whether they are ecclesiastical or secular.
So let us really get to know the people who share the pews and fellowship tables with us. Let us prayerfully elect and support those who represent us. Connect personally and get involved.
Pastor Phil