Bachelor Paving,
Zion’s New Parking Lot,
and a Reminder of
God’s Perspective

     “What happened to the old grassy lot?” you say. The answer is something like, “It used to be a parsonage here, you know. Then we moved it and saved the garage for our fish-fry fundraisers. We moved that old garage out a couple years back and turned everything into a vacant lot so we could build our Fellowship Hall. We used to park on the grass in front of the Fellowship Hall, but we really tracked lots of that grass into the church and there was a lot of water there in the rainy season. And now we got a Fellowship Hall AND a paved parking lot here with stripes.” Well, that parking lot was completed by Bachelor Paving of Foley just a couple weeks back. Now we can drive to church, park, and not even get our feet wet. And this last blessing we owe to the ancient building material called “asphalt.”

     Have you seen any mummies in Silverhill? I know that the Exploreum in Mobile is going to have a mummy this summer for display, but did you know our asphalt parking lot and mummies have a connection? Those Egyptian mummy-makers used bitumen in their embalming process. That bitumen (or asphalt) is the same stuff we read about in the Bible. They used it for mortar when they stuck the bricks together for the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:3). This should figure because we know that asphalt is sticky and is found in natural deposits in parts of the Mid-East--we think especially of the Dead Sea as Christians because in ancient times that was called “Lake Asphaltitis.” And we expect asphalt to last a long time--that’s why they used it in mummies and that’s why we still use it in construction, and that’s why we used it in our parking lot. In fact, about 80% of all asphalt used today in the United States goes to pavement!

     But, did you catch Isaiah 9:10? Things don’t last. In fact, even mummies don’t last forever. And, have you seen any Towers of Babel lately? Things wear out. We build new things and pretend that they will last and last. Our parking lot looks pretty good right now, but we all know that in some years in the future the whole project will have to be done again. Things wear out, but God does not wear out.

     Jesus was talking to the scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 23:29. When there were lots of tourists and pilgrims coming to Jerusalem for the high holy days of celebration, those folks saw to it that all the old tombs were whitewashed so that they looked new and fresh. But just putting a coat of paint on something dead, does not change what is on the inside. We live in a time when dying elements of the Christian church are very adept at painting the outside of a non-living faith to make it look like it is living. I’m sure most of us have friends or family where faith is dried up! That faith needs a transplant, life. Life requires real faith, not pretense and whitewash. And that is probably the point that Jesus makes in this Matthew verse.

     Real life in Christ is not based on whitewash. It is not based on a hundred year old church with a new parking lot in Silverhill. It is not based on asphalt rubbed into mummy bandages 4000 years ago, and it is not based on $70/barrel of oil--the thing from which much of asphalt today is derived. Christ died for us on the cross that we might live for Him and know Him. Many are motivated to build for the Lord, but churches and missions are really incidental to faith. What we build is not for God, because no one can build a building for God. What we can do is build to honor God. As we enjoy our new parking lot and as we continue to build God’s kingdom in Baldwin County through the use of our historic church building and our “new” Fellowship Hall, let’s take Acts 7:49 to heart, and honor God there where the Holy Spirit resides.

     Prayer: Thank You, Father, for the gift of the Holy Spirit Who resides in the place that no man can build, our very heart. Dear Jesus, remind us again of Your kindness toward us that in while we were yet sinners, You died for us to build our faith, not with tar and asphalt, but with Your holy and precious blood. Holy Spirit, thank You for Your ministry to us, to make Jesus real in our lives, regardless of building or edifice. Build us up in Jesus. Amen.