BE WASTEFUL!

Dr. Richard J. Henderson July 10, 2005

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Psalm 119:105-112
Matthew 13:1-9

Introduction

Before I began my ministry with Faith Community, I was the Associate Pastor at the Presbyterian Church in Northville. I worked for four and a half years there and a lot of my time was spent with the Senior High youth group.

There was a young man in that youth group that I felt would be great in the ministry. He was dedicated, smart, friendly, concerned about his faith, and he was a leader. I talked with him about considering the ministry. He said, "Nope, not me." Now he was young, and I was sure he didn't see his true potential. I knew he would be a good pastor. I let it go for a couple of years and then I brought it up again, "I think you would be a very good minister. I really believe this is something you should consider."

"No, I don't think so. I don't really believe it's right for me."

I

That got me to thinking about my time spent in youth ministry. I was at that church for four and a half years, led a couple of hundred youth group meetings, led four mission trips, prepared for Bible study classes, led discussions, had kids over to our house for pizza and talks, put together four musical presentations which we did for the Easter sunrise service, and then took on the road to a half a dozen churches.

I worked long hours - often seven days a week. What was it all for? Where were any results from that ministry? I realized I could easily look at it all as a huge waste of time.

II

That led me to thinking about my own high school years in church - our active youth group meetings. But I realized I only remember what a couple of them were about. I remember the people far more than the content.

When I was in high school we had an associate pastor whose name was John Mehl. His youth meetings made you think. He helped us grapple with our questions. He was a good listener. Sometimes I would stop by the church after school and just sit in his office and talk. I was wasting his time. I realize now he had a hundred other things he needed to be doing, but he never let on. He never looked at his watch, or shuffled papers, or looked anxious that time was passing.

He looked me in the eye and took seriously even the trivial stuff I wanted to talk about. I wrote him a few times from college. Even though he didn't know it, he was a powerful influence on my faith, and in my going into the ministry.

In our first new member classes, here at Faith Community we used to talk about our background in faith, and who the people were who influenced us in our faith. I always mentioned John Mehl. One day I said to myself, "I have to tell John what an important influence he has been in my life."

I saw him about a year later and told him how important he had been. He laughed and looked off to one side. "That's funny because I left the ministry for several years because I felt like I wasn't having any effect. I wasn't making any difference."

I said, "You had a huge impact on my life - I just never told you. I wish I had said something sooner." He had planted seeds.

III

Maybe you get discouraged sometimes - doing the right thing, taking the high road, teaching Sunday school, living faithfully, going to committee meetings. What good am I doing? It seems like a waste of time and effort. Haven't you felt that sometimes, all you are doing doesn't seem to make any difference?

One Saturday morning I was sitting in my office with my feet up on the desk reading. The phone rang. "Hi, this is Kyle, remember me?" It had been at least ten years since I had seen her. She came to the youth group in Northville off and on with friends. She was one of the kids you had to keep your eye on because she wanted to push the limits of what was allowed.

She called because she was thinking of going into the ministry and wanted to talk with me about it. Fortunately, when I fell off my chair it didn't make too much noise! On a scale of one to one hundred, of people I would guess might go into the ministry (with one hundred as most likely), I would have given her a 12!) After I got over the shock, we talked for a long time about ministry. I heard from her later that she was going to seminary. Last I heard, she was a United Church of Christ minister in New England. You never know which seeds will grow!

IV

I remember my Sunday School teacher when I was a child - Mrs. Koster. She was a kind, compassionate, caring person, unrattled by the mayhem we were able to create. She didn't just teach the gospel, she quietly lived it. I'm sure she had plenty of moments when she was discouraged that nothing she did seemed to make a difference. She was sowing seeds. Each Sunday we recited, "All good gifts come from above, coming down from the Father..." What a great foundation that was for a child to grow up with.

We heard for several years from another girl in our youth group. We remember her as a smart, questioning, sometimes arguing girl who read her Bible and dealt with a difficult family situation. She is now very active in her church in Colorado - last we heard leading the youth group there, and raising her family in their church. Some seeds take root and grow.

Derek, whom I tried to talk into the ministry, is teaching school, raising a family, involved in his church. Some seeds don't grow the way you think they will.

Conclusion

Jesus said throw the seeds wastefully - scatter them everywhere. Some will grow, some won't. Don't worry so much about that; throw the seeds all around. One of the difficulties of life is that we move along, and sometimes we don't know which seeds sprouted and which ones didn't. Some grew to be hearty plants, and produced one hundred fold. But we don't get to know about all of them. Maybe it's not so important that we know. Maybe we are supposed to just sow seeds wastefully - throw them everywhere - and have faith in God.

Amen

©Richard J. Henderson 2005