| Crosswords: The Best of Times |
By Richard Prow ~ rpcrosswords@gmail.com
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Some people think this country’s best days are listed on an outdated calendar, and that we will never again be the powerful force in the world that we once were. With the ever looming threat of terrorism, our own self-inflicted violence, the instability within our financial institutions, and the increase in medical care and the costs it generates, it’s hard to argue the point.
Just what is it that makes a nation or a people successful, and more importantly useful? Are the benchmarks for a blessed land the security of it’s borders and a balanced budget and good health for all?
A couple of millenniums back another nation shared a social and economic climate similar to ours of this day. A military threat was not only a possibility but was rather entrenched in their own backyard. The poor outnumbered the rich. Jobs were scarce and at times nonexistent. Leprosy colonies dotted the landscape. The mood of the land could be described as scared and paralyzed.
Yet, instead of relegating that land at that period in time to the back pages of future history books, God chose to do something in and through a people that would reshape the world and the way in which we see Him today.
The message Jesus preached was a perfect antidote to the woes facing a disgraced and struggling nation. He offered hope to a people long beaten down. He offered food to the hungry, water to the thirsty. He offered peace and security to those overwhelmed with uncertainty. He offered healing to the sick. He offered grace. He had a captive audience and He delivered.
While some may view our current situation as bleak and lifeless, God sees an opportunity. It is during times like this when His message becomes more magnified and more well received. There is no more fertile ground in which to sow and there is no greater a time than right now.
Our nation’s best days, in regards to earthly matters, might just be behind us. We might not ever recapture our glory days when it comes to matters of money and military power. And yet we could be on the brink of the most successful times in this nation’s history.
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