It is time to turn the page on the calendar, September is here! Fall is around the corner, and the hope that the cardinals will be playing baseball in October is waning. Oh well there is always next year.
One thing in life we know for sure is that it is always changing. Seasons come and seasons go. I was walking downtown and I noticed how much it has changed just in the last few months. I was heading to one of my favorite pizzerias on Washington Street for a slice, and as I approached the storefront entrance, I was disappointed to see no life inside. The doors were shut and it was obvious they had been closed for some time. My favorite pizza joint had not survived the covid crises and it had to close. I did not even get to say good-bye. Even the landscape of downtown looks empty and sad. There are so many empty buildings that used to have life in them, and now they just sit in despair. One day I was sitting outside a closed Panera, or to us natives, St. Louis Bread Company, on a zoom call in my car. The zoom meeting lasted a little over an hour and while I listened to the meeting, I began to count the cars that would pull up to the closed coffee place. I would watch people, as they came to the door, surprised to see that there were no cars parked outside their favorite watering hole. It looked closed but almost everyone would get out of their car and try to open the front doors. They would cup their hands over their eyes and peer inside to see if the sign was mistaken. They all left with great sadness on their faces. Their favorite place for coffee and bagels was gone. That season of their life had passed. They would no longer be able to continue talking with their favorite barista. It was time to find another place to buy their coffee and bagel. As I watched, another car pulled up then pulled away with a driver scratching his head probably wondering to himself where he was going to get his coffee. At that moment I was filled with thankfulness that we as a church are still open for His business! By his grace we are still able to meet to praise His name and preach His gospel. If someone comes to the church on Sunday morning and try the doors, they will open to the sounds of praise! Let us continue to open the doors of the church and expect great things from our father!
Yep, still open by His grace, see you Sunday.