You tell them

Casting Crowns is one of my new favorite musical talents. Their songs all point out such good things that we should be thinking about, but often aren't. One of their songs talks about, "If we are the body, why aren't our arms reaching, our hands healing, our words teaching?" Great song.

This weekend I got the opportunity to hear Peter Storey speak. He's currently a professor at Duke Divinity School and the former President of the South African Council of Churches. To give a little background, he was instrumental in the ending of apartheid in South Africa.

During the morning he spoke about the fact that we so often forget what real ministry is. We call a lot of things in our church "ministry", but in actuality, it's just a program. Ministry is, as Casting Crowns puts it, being the body. Reaching out. Healing. Teaching. Going. Showing them there is a way. Being like Jesus.

One question remained in my mind. When we first think about helping the poor or something like that, we first see it as an insurmountable challenge. But, once we do it, a great joy comes over us for having done it. How do we inspire others to do this, to become more Christ-like in their actions?

During the afternoon, we were given the opportunity to ask Peter some questions. When he came to our table, this is the question I asked. "How do you see this so called "insurmountable challenge" and show people the joy that it will bring afterwards?" His answer, "You tell them." He said I already had the answer to my question before I asked it. But, I probably needed to be told anyway.

"You tell them." So simple, yet so rarely done. I've spent the past few weeks speaking to a number of groups about my time in West End, Bahamas. Little did I realize it, but I was telling them. I was telling them how much that one experience changed me and all forty-three others who went. I continue to be changed from that experience and I've been home for three weeks.

My prayer is that we would first seek to become more like Jesus ourselves; second that we tell others that it may look like a huge task to take on at first, but the joy that it brings us is absolutely incredible. Let me tell you this -- if you're one of those out there who feel like being like Jesus is a huge challenge, I won't lie to you. It is. It's radical. It'll ruin your life. But, the joy that it will bring to you will be so great you'll wonder how you could have been living life before. It will put a smile on your face in the midst of the greatest tragedy. It will bring you peace. Not outer peace in the world, but peace deep down within yourself. It's not all about "getting saved" or having Jesus as your "personal savior". It's about being like him in all that you do. We so often look up to role models... famous basketball players, presidents, movie stars, our preachers, older siblings, even our parents... we also often overlook the greatest role model of them all. The one whose story has been published and read more than any other book ever written.

Not only is he just the way to salvation, but he is the way, the truth, and the light for all that we do. In seeking to be like him, we will be saved - just as he was - and one day will sit with him in heaven. I can only imagine...