Rev. Richard Smith
| Revelation 21:21 ‘I saw a new heaven and a new earth…’ |
You may have heard the story of the beginnings of Disney World when Roy and Walt Disney in 1965 bought 27,000 acres of undeveloped, seemingly worthless land south of Orlando, Florida. After the land purchases, the Disneys announced plans to open a theme park in Florida; similar to Disneyland in California, which had opened in 1955. Sadly, Walt died in 1966, a year after the announcement. After the park opened, a reporter asked Roy about Walt never getting to see his dream come true. The conversation went like this:
Reporter to Roy: “Isn’t it too bad that your brother, Walt, didn’t get a chance to see this; to see this masterpiece?”
Response from Roy: “Oh, but he did see it. That’s how it happens to be here! He saw it in his mind and in his heart long before the bulldozers began clearing land — long before trucks began pouring concrete — long before amusement rides began to take shape — long before children began to come. Walt saw Disney World in his imagination, and that’s how it came into being.”
Do you think an essential part of our obedience to God is to envision the world He wants and desires; and do something about it? I do! God, I think, wants spiritual dreamers and missional adventurers who are not stymied by the way things are, but who, in fact, are propelled to do all we can to help this world blossom with God’s own dream!
What would this world look like? What does our holy imagination call us to envision and help develop?
*A place where all are treated as children of God whatever one’s skin color or ethnic background;
*A place where those who are different are not castigated and demeaned;
*A place where no child wonders whether he/she will have a real meal today;
*A place where spiritual emphases find wide footing and drive more and more persons to seek God-centered counsel for decisions and priorities;
*A place where generosity of heart and mind helps address poverty and other cutting-edge needs;
*A place where we agree to disagree in love no matter how volatile the issue;
*A place where violence is the exception rather than the rule, both in countries and in our cities.
The key issue, of course, is what we do, in partnership with God, to facilitate the coming of this kind of world! Waiting for the future coming of Jesus to bring the world God wants is not what faithful followers do. God expects and Jesus invites us to be partners with the dawning of this new day! Songwriter John Meyer sings of his generation “waiting on the world to change” so they can have their input. Faithful followers of Jesus don’t wait for the world to change; we do our best, empowered by God’s Spirit, to help change to come! Will we achieve it in this life? Of course not! Should we persistently and diligently seek it? YES! Will God someday complete this dream? Absolutely!! May each of us spend whatever time is needed in faithful prayer, in study of God’s Biblical message, in conversation with other people of faith, in serious and sincere reflection on the part we can and should play!!
