…all their mighty warriors traveled through the night to Beth-shan and took the bodies of Saul and his sons down from the wall.” – 1 Samuel 31:12 NLT
I have been reading a lot of history in preparation for the celebration of the 170th anniversary of our church next month. The stories of the early Hastings pioneers are particularly captivating. However, I find that when I read them, they feel almost like fiction. I am so far removed from the 1850’s that “Henry Hastings Sibley,” “Mahala Felton,” and “Rev. C.C. Kidder” read like characters in a novel to me.
Then, Peggy Alsdurf showed me our oldest surviving church record book. It was begun in 1858, two years after our founding. Rev. John Pugh was the first to sign it as he recorded the marriage of E.L. Clarke to Mary E. Wright in October of that year. There were baptisms as well. The first recorded by Rev. Pugh was the baptism of Henry Russell. And there were deaths, of course. It is noted by the membership record of Marie DeSilva that she, “Fell asleep in Jesus, Oct. 28, 1865”. Marriages, baptisms, and deaths – all recorded in the church record book, just like I have done hundreds of times. That book reminded me that those names in the history books I read were real people, just like you and me.
I experienced something similar on a trip to the holy land. My son Luke and I were visiting the ruins of Beth-shan, where the bodies of King Saul and his sons were hung upon the walls. Something caught Luke’s eye, and he bent down and picked up a piece of Old Testament era pottery. In all likelihood, no one had held it in well over 2000 years. But a real person from bible times once used it.
The bible stories happened so long ago, the characters may feel like fiction, but they were real people. Holding that piece of pottery made me feel connected to their lives in the same way as holding the record book signed by the early pastors of our church. We live in a different time, but we are not so different from them. We are all seeking to know and love the Lord. We are all trying to live our lives as faithful disciples. And we, too, are leaving behind our mark on history. Real people serving a real God.
God bless your week.
Pastor Mark