The Old Country Store

1. The Old Country Store
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   Once upon a time in urban America, the old country store was a fixture that dotted the landscape. Every little town had one, a "mom and pop" store that included gas, groceries, and maybe a soda fountain or restaurant.
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   It was a good place to get a quick sandwich and a cup of hot coffee on cold winter days as well as to pick up a loaf of bread and to fill up your tank.
   ...

   The store rarely closed because the owners often lived in a small apartment in the back of the store. They assumed the responsibility of being there when the people of the community needed them.
4. 
   These small convenience stores have gone the way of other small town institutions. They have been replaced by large malls and community centers. 
5. 
   Certainly, shoppers today have access to many more products and services than these small, independently owned businesses could provide but they really have lost the sense of comradery that came before urban blight overcame America's communities.
6. 
   Another thing that has been lost is the sense of commonly held values that once bound communities together. Gone is the sense of being safe on the street because your neighbor had your back. Gone is the sense of being secure enough to leave your front door unlocked and your car keys in the ignition of your car in the driveway.
7. 
   Perhaps the underlying reason for the loss that's come upon our communities is not the expansion of the business district nor the loss or our sense of cohesiveness, but the abandonment of our faith in a loving GOD who watches over us that has swept our thinking of its anchor to morality. 
8. 
   Perhaps it's our abandonment of GOD'S unchanging truth for our own revolving door of opinions that has diminished our communities from friendly places of safety into large quagmires of corruption in our dealings, and indifference to our neighbor.
9. 
   Maybe what we need is a good, old fashioned revival. May it begin in me,
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12. Remember the old country store?
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