“THE SLOW WORK OF GOD”
“Yet even now,” says the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love.”
– Joel 2:12-13
Seems like life goes on non-stop. Catch a break? Sure. Take a break? A must. Give someone else a break? Of course! But, as long as we’re living and breathing, there will be just one more thing to do. Even if that thing is… ‘stop.’ Therefore, it is to our benefit but not our credit that we trust in the slow work of God.
I’ve always liked Martin Bell’s quote about the church being God’s ‘rag-tag’ army… his words stretch out over the eons from the beginning of all things ’til now…
“I think God must be very old and very tired…. God’s been on the march a long time, you know. And look at God’s rag-tag little army! All he has for soldiers are you and me.” [‘The Way of the Wolf’]
Ministry and life never ends, then. It’s a reflection of God… the one who has no beginning OR ending! It’s hard work. For all of us! We all count! We all are involved. For better for worse, in sickness and in health, etc, etc.
Someone said, ‘you can lead a horse to water but you cannot make it drink.” True. Someone also said, ‘you can lead a horse to water and make it awful thirsty.” True as well. We live in a world where so many know where the water is. Yet, so many now are hesitant or down-right refuse to drink.
Ministry IS hard work. But, as the baptized people of God, we are the “water-bearers” for the thirsty world we are part of. Are we part of the solution or perpetuators of the problem?
Do we carry our water jugs into the world? Do we know where they are? What’s in it for us? Who has tossed their water jug into the streets… now broken into a thousand pieces?
Do we know the ‘source’ of the saving water we bear? It runs shallow to deep! From time to time, there are questions that need to be both asked and answered.
One of my favorite ministry lines is from Pierre Teilhard de Chardin… “trust in the slow work of God!” We must. I do. It’s what keeps me going; and it’s the ‘good news’ of Jesus that does this rather than the ‘bad news’ I get bombarded with day after day.
True? Yes!
And get this… on any given Sunday, less than 20% of America is in a house of worship. That doesn’t seem to be bad news for the 80+%.
They claim to have found something more meaningful on those days… and on any given Sunday about 2/3 of any congregation are not at worship. But that’s not news… good or bad… just a reportable fact, as it reflects a major trend in America’s religious posture… bearing no discernable pattern… as people attend when it’s seems right for them… yet I want to ask… ‘is this helping God’s mission?’
If God desires all people to come into a life-giving relationship with God and one another allow me to suggest Christian community is God’s hope for the good of the world… and if God desires our congregations to grow both in spirit and numbers then churches will… by embracing of the life of Jesus Christ and through the power of the Holy Spirit trust God is making this growth happen.
Thus the time is now for God’s people to embrace the urgency of purpose in calling men and women into relationship with Jesus, for the good of the world. If not us, who? If not now, when?
The diversity of people is a great gift of God who wants to grow congregations that are inclusive and representative of the communities in which God has planted them as every person has an important “God story” to tell wanting others to listen closely and when we do and as we pray and work together, we will discover there is a joyful and abundant outcome when we trust in the slow work of God. Faith matters.
The Rev. Dr. Brian K. Gigee is a long-time resident of Pearland, having pastored four churches over the last four decades in Texas and Louisiana. Read more following Brian’s blog ‘murmurings’ at https://briangigee.wordpress.com/. Send comments and/or questions to godworks247365@gmail.com.
