Patience with the Appendix

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.

Journey On,

Michael