By now North Huron has
had a good taste of the season, with considerably subzero temperatures and
enough snow to make it possible for snowmobilers to finally get their sleds on
the trails. My wife and I have been able to enjoy cross-country skiing in
several locations. Others will prefer to cozy up by the fire with a mug of hot
chocolate (insert favourite beverage here). But, how are we doing in the
seasons of life? Are we weathering the storms?
The start of my own most recent
season in life – getting married and putting my house on the market – has
prompted considerable downsizing and de-cluttering. Recently I emptied about
four bankers’ boxes of old sermon notes and church bulletins from three decades
of ministry and trundled them to the road in a wheelie bin to be recycled.
Pastoral ministry is very much a ‘disposable’ profession – the best sermons are
so contextually tuned they can’t easily be retooled for other occasions. Yet it
leaves one wondering, “What am I accomplishing with my life? What do I have to
really show for it?”
The writer of Ecclesiastes
observed, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity
under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time
to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to
build... a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to
throw away...” (Eccles. 3:1-3,6) As seasons in life progress, there comes a
time to let go – to uproot, tear down, to throw away. Eventually the final
chapter arrives when ‘it all goes back in the box’, so to speak – no one has
seen a hearse pulling a U-Haul yet! How can we be sure our lives are having
some sort of lasting impact that will outlast our own physical existence?
Jesus’ Great Commandment and
Great Commission imply that at the centre of our endeavours should be, not real
estate or relaxation, but relationships – loving one another (Jn.13:34f) and
making disciples (Mt.28:19f). Discipleship is life-on-life, it involves
interacting with other persons in such a way that what’s godly and positive
about us rubs off on the other person, so much that they start to resemble those
same positive qualities and attitudes exhibited in us (inasmuch as we reflect
Christ).
As the end of His own earthly
life drew near, Jesus observed, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be
glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground
and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many
seeds.” (Jn. 12:23f) Christ realized that although His own life would soon be
over, its purpose would be realized as the message about how He made
forgiveness and entry to God’s Kingdom possible would spread all over the
world. And this gospel would change vacillating fishermen into bold proclaimers
of truth, challengers of hypocritical religion, and deliverers of the oppressed
and exploited (e.g. fortune-telling slave girl, Acts 16:18). The Jewish
authorities who attempted to muzzle Peter and John after the healing of a lame
man were surprised at the effect Jesus had had upon these backwoods yokels.
“When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were
unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these
men had been with Jesus.” (Acts 4:13) He had ‘rubbed off’ on them in a
dramatic way – and the Holy Spirit was continuing to greatly transform them.
Whatever season of life we may
find ourselves in, God has a purpose for us in advancing His Kingdom – if we
will embrace it. The Apostle John exhorted three different generations in his
writing: “I write to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven
on account of his name. I write to you, fathers, because you have known him who
is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the
evil one.” (1John 2:12-13) What are the dynamics of your own life with the
children you know? The youth with whom you have contact? The senior citizens
who call you family, or live next door?
When our life draws to a close,
we want to be able to look back and see how the Lord has used us to help shape
others’ lives positively with reference to eternity, even as we begin to lose
our own hold on health, wealth, and property. The Apostle Paul was keenly aware
of seasons’ advance during the phases of his itinerant life. He made a
conscious effort to take others along with him on his journeys and appointed
trained leaders in each place where he planted a congregation. Conscious of
impending martyrdom by the hostile authorities, Paul charged Timothy his
protégé to carry on the work he’d begun, then added: “For I am already being
poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I
have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the
righteous Judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to
all who have longed for his appearing.” (2Tim. 4:6-8) Paul obviously derived
satisfaction from finishing that season well – even if it was to be preempted
by unnatural causes.
One weekend, three young fellows
in a certain city decided to take a bicycle trip into the countryside. Although
inexperienced, they covered forty miles in three and a half hours and
congratulated themselves on their good time. The next morning, as they prepared
to head back to their starting point, they were met by a good friend, who had
just cycled the forty-mile trip that morning and was ready to head back. He was
an excellent cyclist, and with him pacing the novice cyclists back to town,
they made the return trip in just two and a half hours!
To someone you know, you may well
be a ‘seasoned’ expert, having overcome with the Lord’s help various struggles
you’ve had in your life. Who are you taking with you, to show them the ropes?
Who do you yet need to help ‘pace’ you in your own journey? By God’s grace, may
you find similar satisfaction to Paul in doing ‘life-on-life’ well.
