Last night I enjoyed another one of those moments only a dad can appreciate. As the first half of the First Assembly/Booker T. Washington game came to a close, I watched my son Caleb take a knee to run out the clock. The score was 35-0 in our favor. Caleb had thrown for 145 yards and 2 touchdowns and he had also run for another TD. I was pretty certain he was done for the night (and I was correct). Not a bad night for a kid who has never played quarterback and only learned he would be competing for the job a month ago.Of course I am proud. Who wouldn't be?
Interesting thing, however, is the reaction of other moms and dads. As I walked to the concession stand for a little H2O pick-me-up a fairly large number of fans congratulated me, as if I had something to do with Caleb's performance. As I told one dad, my only involvement took place about 18 years ago, but that is another story best kept between me and my wife! Caleb is larger than me. He is faster than me. He is way stronger than me. He is much more athletic than me. And he is fearless. So why congratulate me? What he does on the field is born out of natural giftedness, hard work, diligent preparation, great coaching, and a team of about 65 other guys working with him. Clearly, I had nothing to do with that. So, congratulations Caleb.
Later in the night as I reflected on the misdirected, but well meaning congratulations I could not help but think about how frequently praise is misdirected. I am a follower of Jesus Christ. Many years ago I surrendered my life and will to Him. In exchange He gave me the right to become a child of God, He gave me eternal life, abundant life, and the privilege of representing Him before a depraved and defective world. Certainly, I am not the only follower of Jesus. Millions upon millions live, and breath, and serve Him daily. And somehow we act as though we have done something special. We carry on like we did something to earn our place in God's family. We highlight our accomplishments as if we actually achieved them on our own.
I am guilty. I consider my call to ministry and think I am special. I think about the hard work of academic preparation and believe I am "all that." I proudly remind myself that I "miraculously" escaped both high school and college unsullied by the sexual immorality that befell many. I have served God as a pastor of a local church, but I have also served Him as a denominational servant. Wow, I am good. NOT!Jesus died for me. He saved me. It was God's plan and God's activity all along. Paul reminds us in Ephesians 2:8, 9 "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast." In 1 Corinthians 15:10 he wrote, "But by the grace of God I am what I am."
So you see, I had nothing to do with it. Neither did you.All praise to the One who is worthy. To God be the glory, great things He has done and is doing!
Francis Chan is a Spirit-filled, powerful proclaimer of God's Word, but he is also a very funny man. This clip was taken from the 2008 Willow Creek Arts Conference. He is dead on.
If you have ever served in church leadership in any capacity you know what he says to be true. God love them, there are some members of the body who just drive you crazy; whiners, complainers, people who believe the world and the church revolve around them. I must confess, people like that make me weary. I can't imagine that God called me into ministry, placed me in leadership, and led me to a church as pastor to deal with these kind of people.
In reality, however, those are the kind of people Jesus dealt with. Many whined because His ministry was not what they thought it should have been (see Matthew 11:16-19). More than a few complained because He didn't do it like they thought He should (see Matthew 9:9-11). Some even believed the world revolved around them or their group (see Acts 1:6). Though the Bible does not say, I am sure there were days when Jesus thought "ministry would great if it wasn't for the people." But people was exactly why He came. His mission was to seek and save people to the glory of His Father. And so He loved the whiners. He sought to change the complainers. He didn't give up on the self-centered.
Man, I hate that. I wish He had just given them the old heave-ho. I wish He would have told them to run up an alley and holler fish (words of infinite wisdom from Gomer Pyle). It would make it so much easier for me. But it is not about me or what is easy. Jesus was loving with the unlovable. He was patient with the irritating. And His behavior is a model for ministry.
Paul, in Galatians 5:22, wrote that the fruit of the Spirit is patience. Patience is what is demanded in ministry. Patience is what keeps leaders from thumbing our noses at irritating members. Patience is what causes us to listen when we have a thousand other things to do. Patience is what causes us to care when we don't really. Patience is what brothers and sisters in Christ demonstrate to one another. Patience is what Christ creates in us. And patience is what enables us to love even the appendix.
Last night I taught on the Spirit controlled life from Galatians 5:16-23. In the last two verses the Apostle Paul tells us of the fruit produced by the Spirit in the life of one under His control. One of the traits mentioned is faithfulness. A person who is faithful is one you can count on, is someone who is dependable, is someone who is a sure thing.
We celebrated faithfulness yesterday. For 30 years Jan Sparks has been faithful to her Lord and to her church. For 30 years, Sunday after Sunday, Jan has been a worship leader in our church from the piano. For 30 years, Wednesday after Wednesday, Jan has been at her place behind the piano for rehearsal. For 30 years Jan has taken serious her call to provide beautiful worship music for the people of God.
Jan has been faithful to music because it courses through her soul. She has been faithful to her church because its the only family she really knows. Her whole life has been spent at Bartlett Baptist Church. She has been faithful to her call because she loves Jesus. She has been faithful because she is the epitome of a lady controlled by the Spirit. And we are blessed because of it.
Jan, thanks for your faithful service. I look forward to many more years of the rapturous melodies we hear each week from you and your piano.
At least for me anyway. For the past few years I have been following a few blogs, but have resisted the temptation to begin my own. "I don't have the time to keep it current," Nobody really cares what I think," "I don't want the whole world (obviously I am exaggerating) to know what is going on in my mind," are just a few of the excuses I have used. No more excuses; it is time to enter the world of blogging. So what no one cares what I think. I don't have anything to hid so if the world wants to read my thoughts I say welcome. And as for time, well, I guess I need to be a better steward of the 24 hours I have each day and make time.
So why now? Why begin a blog now? A few reasons. First, sometimes I just need an outlet for my thoughts and ideas. A blog provides that outlet. Second, there are a handful of people who really want to know what is going on in my mind, life, and journey. They are interested in me and my journey because they are friends on the same journey. They hold me accountable. They spur me on to Christlikeness. Third, a blog provides a useful conduit through which to communicate with my Bartlett Baptist Church family.
So, like the adventurers of a bygone era, I set sail into a whole new world. I have some reservations, but mostly excitement about what I will find, who I will meet, and the possibilities before me.
