(Warning: this article contains generational references which may be meaningless to those under the age of 50. Please read with caution.)
A long, long time ago in a cultural milieu far, far away, we spent our summers watching re-runs on television. At 7:00pm, we would actually get off the sofa, walk to the television, pull a knob to turn it on, turn a knob to select one of three channels, adjust the rabbit ear antennae to receive the optimal fuzzy reception, fine tune the reception by compressing the tin foil (yeah…we didn’t even call it aluminum foil back then) and then sit down to watch re-runs of: The Brady Bunch, Star Trek, Mannix, Room 222, Get Christie Love, Happy Days, All in the Family, Charlie’s Angels, Bewitched, The Six Million Dollar Man, and more. New episodes of our favorite shows were broadcast in the fall and early spring, but during the summer, we watched re-runs. We truly did not mind. There were always episodes we had missed; it was a delight to get an opportunity to see them. In the episodes we had seen, there were always nuances we had missed. We liked re-runs. Today, many of our favorite shows have been syndicated, and we watch these re-runs over and over again simply because they are our favorites.
This is the week our MidWeek Fellowship Bible Study and Prayer services typically end; however, this midweek Livestream gathering has become important to many in our current cultural milieu. We have decided to extend our offering of Midweek Services into the summer, so…it’s time for a re-run! I think everyone knows my favorite biblical book is Ruth. I preached through this book when you and I first met. Preaching, however, limits me to 12-15 minutes and barely gives time to scrape the surface of each chapter. This Wednesday, May 6, I will begin a five-week, deeper study of the book of Ruth. If you’ve already heard me preach through the book, maybe you’ll hear your favorite episode again…or maybe you’ll hear an episode you missed…or maybe you’ll catch a nuance that passed you by the last time. This Wednesday, read chapter one of Ruth, boot up your computer, wrap a little tin foil around the top of your screen—for old time sake—and join us for a fun, informative and inspirational re-run.
—Jim