Hanging Out in South Florida

Recently I had to spend a few days in Miami for a work-related meeting. Nice weather of course, but I wasn't particularly looking forward to the long days of meetings or being cooped up in an overpriced high-rise hotel. As usual, I flew down on Saturday afternoon, and chose the more economical Fort Lauderdale airport. After picking up my rental car (which got upgraded to a minivan), I headed south for the Tamiami Trail. (It's actually a highway.) Along the way, I had a disappointing experience with what used to be one of my favorite fast food chains when I lived in Florida. Heading out across the Everglades, I found space in a free campground in Big Cypress National Preserve. I was especially thankful for a free site since I'd forgotten to pack my checkbook.

It was a pleasant night with remarkably few mosquitoes compared to my previous experience camping in South Florida in March. So, after packing up the tent, walking around a short nature trail, and eating some Amish friendship bread, I headed back east toward the highway. Just before I got to the highway, I was able to talk some with my wife on the cell phone. I told her I was probably gonna be heading all the way back to Miami to find a church service since I was pretty much in the middle of nowhere. Of course I knew that I was on the Miccosukee Indian Reservation, but I was still doubtful that I could find a church. God knew better though! As soon as I hung up the phone, I saw a Baptist church just about 100 yards ahead! The gate was locked, but there was a sign saying there would be worship at 10:00 and that "All are welcome".

Since I had about 45 minutes to spare, I went on over to the Shark Valley entrance of Everglades National Park and walked around taking pictures for a while. When I got back to Indian Trail Baptist Church, it was past 10:00 and there was one car in the parking lot. After poking around a little bit, I found pastor David Jumper in the back of the church doing some cleaning. We talked for a while about the ministry, challenges that have really hurt the church over the last several years, and the assembly they had the previous day of Baptist churches ministering to the Seminole and Miccosukee. Finally we decided to go out to the sanctuary, take turns praying, and sing some hymns. After a few hymns, three people showed up for worship! (It was probably close to 11:00 by this point.) Apparently this is not uncommon. So Brother David brought us a message from the Sermon on the Mount about being salt and light in the world.

Whether in Miami or on a remote Indian reservation, God's salt and light to our generation seem to be in awfully short supply. While looking at Matthew 5, I noticed that Jesus was talking to "you". I was curious who that referred to, since so many of the multitudes that were usually with Him were not (not yet at least) faithful, believing disciples of the Lord. It turns out that "You are the salt of the earth" follows just after the Beatitudes. And just before the Beatitudes begin, we are told that Jesus went up on a mountainside with His disciples and taught them. So He talked about "salt and light" with the disciples, and within the context that they should be living the Beatitudes. Even more interesting is that verse 11 changes from the pattern of "Blessed are the/those ..." to "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me" (NIV).

So it appears that the Christians who Jesus actually described as "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world" are those whose faith is radical enough to bring insults, persecution, and slander from the world. What a difference it might make if we really sought for our Lord to be able to (truthfully, of course) say that we are salt and light, instead of either assuming that it's just an automatic "name" for us since we're saved or that it's a vague idealization of what we should be. Over the last few years, I've become conscious that we can often miss the point of Scripture when we don't consider closely enough who a verse applies to. Now the question is do we really, deeply, passionately want these verses to apply to us? Only then should we expect to "Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven" (NIV). Wow.