Jump Start # 1247

Matthew 25:35 “For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in.”

  Our verse today is taken from the judgment parables of Matthew 25. Three stories: wise virgins, dependable servants and disciples who did what they could. In each of these three stories, the Lord is gone and He returns. When He returns, an accounting takes place. For the foolish virgins the door to the wedding feast was shut and they were not allowed in. For the one talent man, what he had was taken away from him and he was cast out into the outer darkness. For the stingy disciples, they were told to depart into the eternal fire. Harsh consequences for those who disappointed Jesus. Not everyone is going to make it. Judgment isn’t passing a written test. It’s living our faith. It’s faith in action. It’s doing things. It’s becoming what we are supposed to be. It’s putting into practice the principles that we believe.

Many things are done quietly and behind the scenes. Because of that, it is easy for some to think that nothing much is going on. Some even complain about that. If they only knew. Let me share with you just a few things I’ve seen recently here where I’m at. These are the invisible, behind the scene things. Most have no idea about these things. I do, simply because I happened to be around to see them.

• There was a deacon showing up one afternoon to fix the underside of a pew. He worked quickly. He is good at what he does. No one will probably ever know what he did. God does. He made a pew stronger and safer for those who sit there. Thanks, Jim.

• There was a young man who has learned how to make sermon CD’s and keep our CD racks stocked. I saw him the other day after services. While many are running around or talking, he was in and out of the media room with various CD’s. When folks look for a CD, there are plenty to choose from thanks to the good work of this young man. I doubt anyone noticed. God did. Thanks, Jordan.

• There was a man last Sunday who left with an arm load of our Jump Start books. He had 24 of them. He told me that he was heading south for the holidays. He wanted to give a complete set for each of his two grown children. Who knows what good those will do. I doubt anyone noticed. God did. Thanks, Frank.

• There was a couple of our deacons who have been spending a lot of time at our building working on media stuff. They’ve changed mics. They are fine tuning our live streaming. They are good at what they are doing. They come in after work and are often here on Saturdays. On Sunday mornings, everything runs smoothly because of the hours these guys are devoting to the work. I doubt anyone noticed. God did. Thanks, Stephen and Donnie.

• There was a man who recently brought in boxes of quality religious books. I expect some of them belonged to his dad. He donated them to the library here. Those books will help folks for years. Instead of selling them on Ebay, he gave them to the church. What a generous heart. I doubt anyone noticed. God did. Thanks, Lee.

• There was our preacher I heard talking to someone on the phone the other day. I don’t know who he was talking to, but what he said and how he said things was so kind. I’m sure it was helpful. Those things happen nearly every day. He’s so good at those things. I doubt anyone noticed. God did. Thanks, Zack.

• There was the day I went to print some class material. The printer stopped. It was out of paper. I looked in the cabinet below and there were boxes and boxes of paper. There were several boxes of toner just waiting for me to use. One of our deacons takes care of these things. We print a lot of things here. We are always printing. We print nearly every day. I have never been out of paper or toner. I doubt anyone noticed. God did. Thanks, Mark.

• There was the young man I saw recently talking to one of our shepherds. This young guy doesn’t come very often. It’s easy for him to fall through the cracks. But this one shepherd had his eye on him. He let the young man just talk and talk. I don’t know what the conversation was about, but you could see the young man stepping a bit higher after that. The words of that shepherd must have been helpful. I doubt anyone noticed. God did. Thanks, Brent.

• There were Bible studies, phone calls, emails going on that most of the congregation does not know about. Those things happen every day. There are visits and cards sent and good being done nearly every day. I doubt anyone noticed. God did. Thanks to those who are doing these wonderful works.

Now all of these things happened just recently, most of them just last week. These are the things that are going on behind the scenes. There are all kinds of things that are going on that all see. There are teachers who are always teaching. There are bulletins always printed. A clean building. Lights that work. People opening doors. Hand shakes and hugs and smiles. We see those things. Those aren’t the only things that are taking place.

Two observations: first, it’s easy to think that nothing is going on. It may seem like that because you do not see what’s going on behind the scenes. There are so many things that most do not even know about. When folks complain about nothing being done, it generally means that they are not aware of what’s going on. Some may suggest, why don’t we post what we are all doing? Not a good idea. That can lose the purpose for these things. Bragging can be introduced when that is done. Behind the scenes is the way it should be done. Behind the scenes is best. God knows. That’s all that matters.

Second, it makes me look to myself and ask, “What am I doing?” There are so many lives that can be touched, taught, encouraged and helped. It’s not only the big things, but even the little things that matter. There are things each of us can do. Don’t toot your horn. Don’t tell others. Don’t complain that you are the only one. Just get busy and do what you can. Do it the best that you can. You are serving the Lord.

If you took a moment are really thought about it, most of us would realize that there are many people who are doing things behind the scenes. That’s where they work the best. It would be helpful if now and then you just thanked the Lord for their great service. I know for me personally, they certainly make things easier for me to do what I can. Together we are a team. We are not competing against each other. We are not trying to see who is the best. We are on the same team. We want success in all that we do. We want Heaven.

Thanks.

Roger