“But make up your mind not to worry beforehand…”
Luke 21:14 (NIV)

Something new is coming.
It’s already here.
It will change everything.
And everyone can feel it.

Artificial Intelligence.

Everyone is talking about AI. It’s everywhere.

Among clients and business circles, it is the number one topic of conversation.

What can AI do for us?
How will AI transform our business?
What does the future look like with AI?

And whenever something comes along with the transformative power to change “normal” life as we know it, it stirs within human minds…

Doubts.
Fears.
Anxieties.

What is going to happen to me?

On April 26th I’ve been asked to give a presentation about the story behind our little town of Pella, Iowa. It’s a fascinating story about one man, a Pastor in the Netherlands, who was suffering persecution from the religious establishment for not submitting to their authority — not unlike how I described Jesus in yesterday’s post/podcast. He also saw little or no long-term future for the poor among his flock in the social and economic class system of Europe.

He envisioned creating a little town on the Iowa prairie in America. It would be a “city of refuge” to which he and his flock could flee, be free, and find hope and a future.

He called the town he envisioned Pella.

He called it this for a very good reason.

Today’s chapter is fascinating. Jesus prophetically tells His disciples about the future. It’s not a pretty picture.

The Temple they’re standing in will be reduced to rubble.
Armies will surround Jerusalem.
They will be seized and persecuted.

And when they see that happening Jesus said,

“Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city.”

What most people don’t know is that around 65 A.D. the political tension in Jerusalem was at an all-time high. The Jewish people were rebelling against the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire was persecuting both Jews and Christians. In 70 A.D. Rome will surround and destroy the city and the Temple — just as Jesus said.

A prophet rose among the Christians in Jerusalem.
The prophet told all the Christians to flee to a city of refuge near Galilee.
They packed up their lives.
They fled with everything they had.

Historians have suggested that had they not done this, Christianity may have ended with the Roman destruction of Jerusalem.

The city to which they fled was called Pella.

As Jesus speaks to His disciples about this time of transformative turbulence, change, and even hardship He tells them something interesting.

“Make up your minds beforehand not to worry…”

Trust God.
Trust the Story God is authoring.
Remember the sparrows.
Your heavenly Father’s got you.

And faith is a mindset.
It’s planted long before it’s harvested.
It’s prepared well before it’s needed.
It’s a choice I make long before I see armies gathering.

In the quiet this morning, this reminds me of the fears and anxieties that come with any transformative time of change and turbulence.

Like AI changing life as we know it.

“Make up your minds beforehand not to worry,” Jesus said.

The believers fled to Pella, just as Jesus prophetically suggested they should in today’s chapter. They found a city of refuge. They lived and flourished.

The persecuted believers in the Netherlands fled to the Iowa prairie and created their own city of refuge called Pella. They lived and found hope and a future. I know. I live here amidst their legacy.

As David (who knew a thing or two about transformative life-change) wrote in his lyrics to Psalm 62:

Trust in him at all times, you people;
    pour out your hearts to him,
    for God is our refuge.
Psalm 62:8 (NIV)

I’ve seen a lot of change in life in my 60 years.

Man walking on the moon.
The advent of the personal computer.
The internet connecting the world.
The phone in my hand with more computing power than the technology that put man on the moon.

And now… AI.

I don’t know how it’s going to transform life and business.

But I’ve made up my mind beforehand not to worry.

I know where to run.

Faith isn’t the absence of chaos.
It’s knowing where to go when the chaos comes.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.