September 8, 2006

“Thanking God for the Termites”

Yes, Indiana, there is a Santa Claus. I preached in Santa Claus, Indiana, this past summer. In addition to being home to the very first theme amusement park in the US, Santa Claus, Indiana, is also home to a very lively and growing United Methodist Church which relocated from its old building to a new facility due to termites. The old, historic building was abandoned when the Trustees and a building engineer discovered that termites had eaten into the old hewn timbers, made them nearly hollow, and caused the building to be unsafe for further use. After meeting in the school and a community building for a few years, the congregation relocated, built a new building and now has expanded ministries and growing numbers of people.

One of the men who had served as a trustee during that transition told me the story, and then he said, “We just thank God for those termites. If it had not been for them, we would still be comfortable in that old building, but now we are growing, reaching new people, and expanding our ministry.”

That is the first time I have ever heard anyone say that they thank God for termites, but I understand what he meant. All of us get comfortable and we all avoid change. But when circumstances change through adversity or new opportunity, and we respond in faith, then we often look back and realize that God has helped us move through those changes into expanded opportunities, new wisdom, and perhaps even new ways to serve. At least that is how they look at it in Santa Claus, Indiana.

Maybe that is what the Apostle Paul means when he talks about thanking God in all circumstances and learning to rejoice always. Maybe those circumstances are themselves “neutral” but we can approach those circumstances in faith and find our way forward. Maybe we can even be thankful for termites.

from Bishop Michael J. Coyner

Indiana Area of the United Methodist Church
"Making a Difference ... in Indiana
and around the world"

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