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Pastoral
Pondering:
Give of yourself -
God will set
your boundaries |
A few weeks ago in worship we spent some time praying together in small
groups, and in each of the three services it was good to pray with people I’d never
met.
Probably not everyone felt that way — maybe you didn’t or know you
wouldn’t. So do you think there seems to be a growing cultural trend toward shyness
and withdrawal?
I remember being in a worship discernment group (with people much hipper than
I), when somebody suggested we might ask people to break into small groups.
The groans were audible, and comments included wonderfully descriptive
phrases like “run screaming” and “fetal position.” It was surprising
even to a shy person.
More recently someone asked if I could recommend a mentor for a sincere
and talented young man I’ve come to respect but know only a little. Several older
friends came to mind and were mentioned in the conversation, and only later it dawned on
me that maybe I could be a mentor to this younger one or someone like him. So why was that
idea so slow in coming?
Some time back I had the thought that many of us suffer from low self esteem.
Okay, that’s a little cheesy, but you probably know what it means. “Everyone a
minister” means “everyone else” or at least someone else because we’re
not up to it ... and for good reasons that maybe we keep on a list: We don’t have
anything to offer, others could do so mush better. I’ve tried before and failed ...
or was underappreciated, or rejected or criticized.
We’re not willing to give what it would cost in time and effort, or we
already gave, we served our time. I’m still a “seeker/struggler” myself,
how could I help someone else? Maybe it’s safer over here by myself.
It could be you identify with some things expressed in this list or could add
some good reasons of your own why finding a place to serve isn’t your thing. We could
spend some time speaking out what we probably already know — that while the reasons
(excuses) we lean on to avoid obedience don’t exempt us from joining God’s work
in the world, we are absolutely right in acknowledging our limitations.
Here are some lyrics by Billy Crocket.
“What you got, it ain’t near enough to make a difference here,
it’s all too clear.
“What you got may not be enough to fill a coffee cup, it don’t add
up.
“But, oh, remember the fish and the loaves, how love has math of its
own.
“So what you got is more than enough when God gets a hold ... of what
you got.”
And that’s the point. We bring what we “got,” which (I know
you know) is just what God has given. God receives whatever we bring, a lot or a little,
and makes it “more than enough to make a difference here.” That difference could
be big and astounding, or it could be as simple as praying with someone we just met.
Mauri Macy is a pastor at the Newberg Friends Church. |
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From Oct. 25,
2003, Newberg Graphic
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