I had several ideas for bulletins this week but someone that I consider a good friend said something to me last weekend that I have been turning over and over in my head. Thus, every time I started fleshing out an article I would wind up tossing it all out and going back to this statement. Since I can't seem to get away from it, I think it's best I just address it entirely.

Someone who has been a member here, as far as I know all of their Christian life, was a bit sad when thinking of all the past members who have come and gone. What concerned her the most was that she (that's a hint) felt she was not keeping in touch with folks as much as she needed to. "Why Randy", she said, "I haven't spoken to more than a few times since they left. I am just not good at staying in touch with other Christians as I should be."

This caused me a great deal of thought, because I believe I have the most awful memory in history. Or do I? See, I have attended (as far as I can recall) 6 churches in my lifetime. I spent at least a full year at each. One 20 years. Here, going on 9, I have met hundreds of folks. I have taught their children, had a meal at their tables, and even dated some of their daughters. I've built things for them and with them. I've played games with them, attended potlucks, and traveled to many baseball/football/hockey/etc games to cheer side by side the old home team. Yep, I've eaten gobs of chocolate on occasion, too

I simply can't remember them all. Oh, I have lots of pictures. I have a full set of digital pictures from the church here and the church in Colorado Springs where I last attended before here. I have pics from folks of many of the various churches I have been. You would think with pictures you couldn't forget them, but it happens.

Terror is when I go back to visit my parents, mine and Deniese's, and I stroll into the building. The faces are all familiar but I can't come up with the names. If you say their names, I immediately know who you are talking about (a face comes to mind) but the reverse is not true. They all seem to remember ME, but I am only one and they are many.

So this got me thinking a lot, about a lot of different things. I can't even recall most of the people I went to school with, who I spent years with growing up. My memory must be terrible. And even when I do see someone who I haven't seen in a long time and by some miracle I do remember them, I usually find I have very little to talk about other than some lame "You doing ok? Me too." And when I try to remember the name of someone who haphazardly attended, hardly ever spoke up in bible class, and ran out the back when services were over it's doubly hard. I have that problem right here in our church sometimes!

Andy Rooney once went to a high school reunion and saw an old classmate. They sat at the same table and discussed this and that, really just fluffy stuff. It was when he was driving home hours later that he remembered when he had last seen his friend. They were jumping out of their fatally damaged B-24 Liberator over Germany in World War Two. It never occurred to him to ask his friend anything about it.

They say make hay when the sun is shining, and you know we all have lives to live. I could spend all my time staying in touch with my old friends trying to keep them close, but they have their own lives apart from me. We'll always be friends, but I have new friends now, you all here, and I need to focus on that. So I don't know what that means, to be good at staying in touch with Christians who have left "like I should be." I know when Paul stopped places and preached in churches, sometimes for months or years at a time, he did write the occasional letter to friends in other places. But he was busy with reaching the lost, edifying the saints, and debating those who would teach false doctrines right where he was. In other words, he had a life to live! And so do we. It's ok if folks forget us, and if we forget folks. We're human and that happens. But if God doesn't forget us, and we don't forget him, it will all work out! What a grand "class reunion" that will be one day!

Randy