I REMEMBER

I REMEMBER, as I contemplate facing the heat and humidity that are integral parts of August weather, how I reacted to my initial introduction to summertime in Northeast Louisiana. I had been given the opportunity to serve the Delhi Presbyterian Church as a student supply pastor during the summer of 1960. Their pastor had accepted a call to another church and I was to “fill in” while the Delhi Church looked for his replacement. I realized that, when the summer ended, I would return to the seminary for my last year of study, leaving Delhi behind. So I headed out in my non-air conditioned Pontiac, looking for the town of Delhi. The longer I travelled, the more I was aware of how hot it was and the more I questioned whether or not I could make it through the summer.

Upon arriving in Delhi, I met the retiring pastor, who was scheduled to depart the next day. He showed me the pastor’s study which, to my great relief, was cooled by a window AC (well, at least I could study and prepare sermons without too much “suffering”!). Next, he took me to the sanctuary which, I learned, was also chilled by a huge cooling system. Great! That meant that our worship services would be conducted in comfort! Maybe I could make it through the summer after all. Finally, the pastor showed me my living quarters. Would you believe it? It was also air conditioned. I had learned again: God is good!

Not only did He get me through that hot summer, He also worked things out so that the Delhi Presbyterian Church decided that they would wait until I graduated from seminary if I would accept a call to be their pastor. I expect that the awareness that there was an abundance of air conditioning in Delhi may have encouraged an affirmative response to their call. Seriously, that was not involved in my consideration; but had it been, it would not have been a negative.

There was a concern, though, and it was that my old Pontiac did not have an air conditioner. I doubted that my parishioners would appreciate having visits from a “sweaty” preacher. Fortunately, since I did not have any educational loans to pay off, I was able to make arrangements by which I could purchase a new vehicle – one that did have AC My sister, who was a couple of years older and ages more mature than I, and who had a great influence on my life, thought that I was being extravagant in buying an auto with an air conditioner –our family had never owned a car with such excessive luxury. Well, a couple of years into my Delhi ministry, my sister and her husband visited us in our new home town and it did not take long for her to move air conditioning from the category of “luxury” to that of “necessity.”

Air conditioning helped me cope with the heat and humidity; I was able to adjust and ended up pastoring in Delhi for over 50 years.

My point is that we regularly encounter roadblocks or inconveniences that can be frustrating, or even completely disheartening, but if we face them, trusting God to help us, they usually can be managed. I pray, then, that I will rely on God for His grace and that I, and you, will be able to successfully cope with any challenges that confront us. Let’s keep remembering that God is good!

article by PAUL LIPE opinion expressed is that of the writer