I do remember. I remember the stories that my aunts and uncles told me. Do you have stories that have been passed down to you?

I was not there for the massive event, the worldwide all-consuming event, called the Great Depression. My aunts, uncles and parents told me stories about it all. Those stories sometimes trickled out in a remark here and there such as how nice it has become to easily have a birthday cake with sugar in it. Then I would hear a little story about ration stamps for groceries and saving some stamps up for special occasions. Sometimes the stories would come out in a regular sit-down time. In those times I would hear about how my dad was considered “spoiled,” because he was the one of his siblings able to go to school past the eighth grade.

Right now I wonder, did they know? Did my aunts, uncles and parents know that they were in remarkable times as they were happening? Did they know that they were DOING amazing things or could they only see how significant it all was in looking back?

It sure seems that right now we know that we are, you and I, in a very extraordinary time right now. However you label or describe our lockdown, we are in it. However you perceive the virus and pandemic, it affects everyone.

My aunt, Dolly, told me one story of fruit from far away and how it tasted. She was a teenager in that Depression day and that particular fruit was rare around her. She could remember the taste of it and the markings on the box.

There are many “ordinary” things around you right now. Our events just might mark them in our memories as something…well, something extra-ordinary. They are.

In those stories of remarkable times, we can see God’s care through it all. That is one gift of the Bible. When we look at the stories of humanity, we can see God’s care and provision through the highs and the lows. We can flit right through a story and see clearly that God was present. When they lived the story, it took such time and they went through such trials.

We do know that we are living in one of our remarkable stories right now. We will hold memories of all that affects us now.

We also know that God is with us in all of this. God is with us in our triumphs and our mistakes. God is providing. When we look back on these days we will see that more clearly. We can be heartened by relying on God’s love, care, and presence now.

We are, right now, living in the Easter time. We are living in the time when the power of death and sin has been vanquished. We are not living in the easy time but we surely are living in the time where God holds victory—THE time where God loves us so much that God gives us the victory.

May this very same God, the One True God, Bless you richly right now!

Your Brother in Christ,

Pastor Rhodie