Change

In anticipation of our 125th anniversary year in 2018, we are compiling information to trace the history of our Mission. One important feature has emerged: over the century and a quarter of our existence, the Mission has sought to minister to the changing needs of our culture. What began as an outreach to teach English and basic academic skills to immigrant children and their families, has now become an emergency overnight shelter that ministers to men, women, and children in crisis situations, including mental health issues, substance abuse, economic disadvantages, and a host of other situations.

One thing we have learned - and are still learning - is that we cannot do ministry "the way it's always been done." While our core values and statement of faith do not change, our methods must. This was recently brought home by this passage in a commentary on the book of Ecclesiastes. Douglas Sean O'Donnell is the author of this volume in the Reformed Expository Commentary. Commenting on Eccl. 7:8-9, O'Donnell writes:

Say not, "Why were the former days better than these?" For it is not from wisdom that you ask this (Eccl. 7:10). To paraphrase, "Ah, the good old days! When I was a boy, gas was a nickel a gallon and young men wore their trousers above their bottoms, not below." Nostalgia of this sort nauseates Pastor Solomon, for he knows, as we all should know, that each age has its own opportunities and challenges, and we cannot face the challenges of our age by pining after another. Such praise of the past prove our impatience with the present. So let's come down from our pride-in-the-past pedestal (v.8) and give today's generation a shot. You never know, "the end of a thing" might be better than its beginning" (v.8).

What will the issues be if we are allotted another 125 years of existence? Whatever they may be, our prayer is that we are flexible enough to meet those needs in an efficient, God-honoring way.