Today’s author is Intentional Interim Pastor, Steve Sylvester.
Our reading yesterday was from the book of 1 Kings. As 1 Kings opens, King David is an old man. He has not yet officially appointed his successor, and his sons are jockeying to take the throne. Even after Solomon’s accession and David’s death, the struggle for the throne continues, resulting in Solomon having his elder brother, Adonijah, executed. The plotting and violence in the opening chapters of 1 Kings continues till the kingdom of Israel ceases to exist. At no time during those centuries of palace intrigue and bloodletting is the right to serve the focus.
Invited to… serve. That’s our theme till we get to the season of Advent. As I pointed out in yesterday’s sermon, we seldom fight to the front of the line for the privilege of serving. Yet it is service that marks the Christian community. Why is that? Well, it’s not because that’s how we prove ourselves worthy of God’s love. It bears repeating that God’s love for us is not contingent upon anything we do. We serve because our neighbor needs our good works. We serve because God’s creation needs our good works.
As we serve, it’s a good idea not to overthink things. I am reminded of the story of the Lutheran pastor who was chasing pure godly motive. He enjoyed being a pastor, but as he reflected, he felt sad that he was glad that he was a pastor. But then it occurred to him that it was good that he felt sad that he was glad that he was a pastor. He did feel a little guilty, however, that he felt it was good that he felt sad that he was glad that he was a pastor. And so goes the tail chasing, round and round in circles as we question whether anything we do is good and right and God pleasing.
Theologian Frederick Buechner wrote that “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” This is similar to Pastor Rick Warren’s idea of “the purpose driven life,” in which it is our assignment to figure out the thing God would have us do with our lives. Both of these thoughts resonate with me, but they both also feel a bit idealized. Occasionally, someone will ask me when I knew God wanted me to be a pastor. My response usually disappoints them. “I think there are a number of things God might have wanted me to be,” I say, “but I became a pastor, and I believe God has done some good things through me over the years.”
So, look around you. What needs do you see out there? And “out there” can be an arm’s length away or halfway round the world. Are there any needs that you feel called to address? Don’t ask whether you can “solve” those needs, or whether you are just the right person with the perfect gifts. Because those are two places where we often freeze up: is this need too big? am I “the one?” One way of avoiding the freeze up is to ask your Christian Community—in this case, Prince of Peace—to help you by giving you direction and encouragement and by holding you accountable. We are invited to serve, and it’s an invitation that is always being extended, because there are always opportunities.