Acts 7:1, 44-60And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:
“Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen. 45 Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our fathers. So it was until the days of David, 46 who found favor in the sight of God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. 47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him. 48 Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says,
49 “‘Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is my footstool.
What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord,
or what is the place of my rest?
50 Did not my hand make all these things?’51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, 53 you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.”
54 Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. 58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Genevieve Sophia Prigge Dolan, Diane’s mother, fell asleep (cf. v. 60) more than 13 years ago. But if you were to ask her about the good old days, she would allow that they were old. But she did not think of them as good. We have an old butter churn from parents. She wanted nothing to do with having in her home – even when such old artifacts were a decorating go-to. That represented work. She loved modern conveniences. She was a wonderful homemaker, a great mom, faithful wife, and my favorite mother-in-law. I had only one MIL, but she was my favorite. I didn’t have a most-hated one! Jenny was a wonderful woman who had no good-old-days memories.
Life was tough back then. And I’m not talking about walking-uphill-both-ways-to-school-and-back-in-the-snow tough. I’m talking churn your own butter. Milk your own cows. Grow your own potatoes, and harvest them. Sweep the floor (no vacuums back then, not to mention no Roombas!).
As Stephen outlines the history of God’s people, he recounts how Moses was directed to build a tabernacle which the children of Israel carried through the wilderness for 40 years. Breaking camp must have been quite an ordeal for those charged with its care. Then, when Joshua took the Israelites into the Promised Land, they had to carry the tent of the meeting with them from place to place. This went on for 400 years or so until God laid out the plans for a permanent place of meeting.
David had the dream of building the temple. But Solomon, his son, brought it about. I’m sure it was glorious, but I wonder how many of God’s people realized how splendid and convenient it was to have a permanent building rather than carrying a tent from place to place. Although the stories of the wandering were certainly passed down from generation to generation, the realities of that old hard life were only stories. It’s one thing to hear about it. It’s quite another to have lived it.
Thank God for those who have gone before us and done the hard work of organizing service projects, coordinating evangelistic efforts, building church buildings, and anything else that has sustained the mission of God and furthered the growth of God’s kingdom. Their hard work in the good old days is testimony to the work of God’s Holy Spirit and a blessing for which we may rightly give glory to God.
David Bahn - Reflections 
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