Remembering.

So much of our faith and life relies on remembering...
  Recently I've enjoyed spending some time talking with old friends about different experiences we shared in the past.  It is funny how something that can be hilarious to a small group of people could be completely uninteresting or even horrifying to a completely different group.  A group of VMI alumni recently created a page on the social networking site Facebook, called "Having to explain VMI terms to people.."  While the title is not exactly catchy the page has more fans than the official page for the school.  The reason I believe is the same reason I follow it so regularly.  There is something about being around people who "get you", who have shared similar experiences and speak the same language.  Whether it is the inside jokes of friends or the more important work of support groups for people going through a common struggle, sharing stories with those who understand feeds you.
The body of Christ is about remembering as well.  The church, to be sure is always called to mission, to be active, involved in our community and world and doing good in Jesus name.  At the same time we are also a remembering community.  Through repeating the stories and truth in God's Word in Worship and Bible Study, singing the truth in song and tasting the truth around the Lord's table we remember Who God is and what God has done.  We remember so we do not forget and become simply another Non government organization doing some kind of good.  We remember why we do good and we remember what truly is good.  We avoid the pitfalls of well intentioned errors that seek to do good for another but in fact lead them further from the truth.
The truth and remembering the truth is important because as much as the church is about remembering it is also about "membering". We are about welcoming others into the family of God.  In Baptism we remember and reenact the reality of Christ's death and resurrection washing us clean of the guilt of our sins.  It represents a change from being one thing apart from Christ to a completely different thing, a new creation, in Christ. 
This new month begins having just celebrated Memorial Day, a day to remember the cost of the freedoms we enjoy.  Let us remember the gift freely given by those men and women that served us.  Let us also enter this season of Summer with our more relaxed church schedule, to deliberately take the time to remember what it is we believe and Who we serve.  When we do this, I believe we will be all the more motivated to be the church we are called to be.
In Christ and on the Shepherd's Path,
Mark

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Rev Mark R. Simonds
Pastor, Oakdale UP Church
"Declaring Teaching and Living God's Word of Grace"
President, West Allegheny Ministerial Association
"Worshiping and Serving One Triune God Together"