My dad was a pilot in the Air Force. He retired the summer after I graduated from Plattsburgh High School in upper New York State. A few years ago I returned to Plattsburgh for a reunion and drove out to see the Base which had closed. At the end of flight line the old Alert Building or Mole Hole as it was known, was still standing. Most of the building is under ground with long tunnels rising to the service. We were stationed at Plattsburgh Air Force Base during the era of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Flight crews were stationed in the Mole Hole 24/7. Their B-47’s were parked nearby and stayed in a constant state of readiness. When the Klaxon sounded they never knew if it was a practice/readiness alert or the real thing. They knew they had fifteen minutes to be airborne. They stayed in their flight clothes 24/7 and at the sound of the Klaxon ran to their vehicles parked at the end of the tunnels. Once the whole crew was in the vehicle they drove to their waiting airplane and made final preparations for take-off.
My dad was a Squadron Commander and sometimes would know if a practice/readiness alert was planned. On one such occasion he took me with him and we stood at the end of the runway as a whole squadron of B-47’s took off within fifteen minutes of the alarm. It was a sight to behold, watching these huge jet bombers rumble down the runway and then as the pilot ignited the JATO bottles the B-47 just jumped into the air. (JATO is an acronym for jet-fuel assisted take off. It is a system for helping overloaded aircraft into the air by providing additional thrust in the form of small rockets.)
Back in the day, the days of the Cold War, the threat of war was very real. I remember well the day my father came home and told my mother to take me and my brother and to drive up into the Adirondack Mountains. When we left it was very clear he did not expect to see us again. The Cuban Missile Crisis did in fact bring our nation to the brink of war.
Because of the very real threat the alert crews were highly motivated to stay in a constant state of readiness. Jesus is telling us God will fulfill his promises to make all things right at the end of this present age. The mission of the church is to stay in a state of readiness, 24/7. That is hard to do, very hard to do. However, when I consider the state of the world we live in I am highly motivated. (We like to think the USA is the most developed, the most prosperous nation in the world, yet 15% of our people live below the poverty level.) I long for the day that God will come again. And, I am reminded by the Apostle Paul: “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:58
To underscore this point Jesus brings his teaching about the coming Kingdom of God to a climax in a series of four parables. The first, the parable of The Wise and Faithful Servant we read today. Tomorrow we’ll read the parable of The Bridesmaids; Friday the parable of The Talents; and Saturday we’ll read the parable of The Sheep and Goats.
What does today’s reading reveal to you
about God?
What does it reveal to you about yourself?
Think about what God wants you to do
or remember about this passage.
Does God want you to change anything in your life?
15-Sep-11 Matthew 25:1-13
No comments:
Post a Comment