"The Connector"

You would probably never think that the construction of a log cabin/barn could ever relate to the redemptive plan of God. But it does.  1971 (I was 13 years old) has proven to be one of the most interesting summers as a Boy Scout.  One of the farmers in our community was going to tear down one of his log tobacco barns and wanted to know if we would like to help tear it down and have the logs.  We said, “YES!”

Our plan was to tear down the barn, move the logs into a secluded area of the woods on the farm where I grew up and build a cabin for troop campouts.  Very ambitious for 12 and 13 year old boys (well, my dad helped).  We made our plans and started the work.

First, we cleared an area about a mile in the woods behind my house and cleared an old logging road to get back to the campsite.  Next we began to tear down the barn using ropes and tractors.  

Terry and I love to watch “Barnwood Builders” and their process of tagging logs is exactly what we used in 1971.  When tearing down a log barn, you have to know where EVERY single log is placed to rebuild it accurately.  So before removing the first log, we took a white marker and marked the position of every log and the seal (foundation) logs were first.  We marked the seal log front, left side, right side, rear and then moved up to the next row of logs to repeat the procedure.  Once everything was tagged, we could then start to remove the logs.  It took days for us to tear the old barn down, and while hard work, we had a lot of fun.  Our goal was to have the cabin in place by the winter camping season.

After tearing down the log barn, we moved the logs to the campsite and began the rebuild.  Because we were not going to build up as high as the old barn, we decided to build the cabin wider.  So the question was, HOW?  With the logs being like a jigsaw puzzle, we realized was there had to be some type of connection in the back wall for the logs to sit properly.  The seal logs (foundation logs) went into place.  Everything was going fine until we got to the second row of logs on the rear wall which was now double the width of the original barn.  We now had to insert the connector piece.  We took one of the logs we knew we would not use and stood it upright, took a chainsaw and notched each side where the rows of new logs would join, and the connector log worked perfectly.  We finished our cabin, added a tin roof, cut a large opening in the front and we were ready for the winter camping season of 1971.

I know you are thinking, “Why is Pastor Marty telling me this story?”  Good question.  Ted Dougherty (HOPE’S Worship Leader) and I were discussing the Christmas Eve Service this past Monday and I was reviewing the movement of the service through scripture.  God lays the foundation through the “Foreshadowing” in Genesis 3:8-19, Genesis 22:15-18, Isaiah 9:2-7, and Isaiah 11:1-10.  Next God builds, in His Word, the “Annunciation” in John 1:1-14, Luke 1:26-28, and Matthew 1:18-25.  God announces His Son’s entry into the world to begin His redemptive plan.  And then we have the “Fulfillment” in the coming Messiah in Luke 2:1-7 and Luke 2:8-14.  

God’s plan of salvation began in the garden.  This was the “seal log.”  Man had torn down the perfection of God’s creation through sin.  God marked each step needed to rebuild this relationship and in the rebuilding of this relationship it would take a “Connector” piece.  For God to view us in connection with Him again, there had to be a connector, one that would graph us back into Him.  And that person was His Son, Jesus Christ.

You see, God the Father sees the believer through His Son.  Because of Jesus’ work on the cross, God the Father sees us as cleansed, whole, re-connected to Him.  When Jesus said, “It is finished!” on the cross, folks, it was finished.  Nothing else needed, but Him!  He gave ALL the ability to be re-connected to our creator, our Heavenly Father.  Oswald Chambers states that there are no greater words ever spoken in all history, for all time, than “It is Finished.”

In the 1971 rebuild of our Scouting Cabin, we realized it would never come together without a connector log, anything else would fail.  As you begin this 2017 Advent Season, as you prepare your heart to celebrate the birth of your Savior, remember, HE is the reason, the only reason, our relationship has been reconnected to our Father.  Thank you God for your perfectly laid out plan of redemption!

Blessings,                                                                                    

Pastor Marty Duffell - Pastor, HOPE Church Raleigh                   

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