The Open Door

In case you are not already aware, let me inform you, or remind you if you are aware that Congress has extended the duration of Daylight Saving Time beginning this year. Instead of Daylight Saving Time starting at the traditional time, it will begin on March 11 at 2 a.m. and will conclude on November 4 at 2 a.m.

You may recall that when the year 2000 rolled around, there was a lot of discussion about Y2K (the year 2000) being a time of great confusion because of the clock and date chips that are included in so much of our technology operating clocks in computers and even appliances. There was a great deal of fear that when the year rolled from 99 to 00 that multiple systems unable to interpret “00” would simply shut down. This could have had dramatic impact across our country. Corporations spent a great deal of time and money making every effort to see that Y2K did not become a serious concern.

The year 2000 came and went without the catastrophe that everyone had anticipated. Not long ago, however, a friend suggested to me that the change in Daylight Saving Time could be the Y2K that never happened back in the year 2000. Businesses and individuals are working on this issue right now because automated calendars, computers, PDAs, cellular phones, and many other pieces of technology are preset to adjust to Daylight Saving Time automatically, but they are not set to do it at the earlier date prescribed by Congress for 2007.

I encourage all our pastors to be aware of this and do whatever is necessary with the technology at the local church to be sure that proper adjustments are made. It would be a good idea to remind everyone in the congregation of the new dates for the beginning and conclusion of Daylight Saving Time.

Every time I think about Daylight Saving Time, I remember my pastor, Dr. Edgar Arendall at Dawson Memorial Baptist Church in Birmingham, where I attended as a college student. One year on the Sunday that we began Daylight Saving Time, he shared with laughter the time a dear sweet lady came out on Daylight Saving Time Sunday, shook his hand and said, “Pastor, I just love Daylight Saving Time. It gives my flowers another whole hour of sunshine.”

Actually, the way I prefer to look at it, Daylight Saving Time gives all the witnessing teams from our churches another whole hour of daylight in the evening as they go out across their communities to share their faith in Jesus Christ and invite people to faith in our Lord!