My friend’s head hung, her voice a whisper, as she described a missed opportunity to pray for someone. I could almost see God tapping her on the shoulder as she struggled, saying, “That guilt you are carrying? That’s not from me. Put it down.”
I used God’s extended grace to comfort my friend, realizing in the same breath that I carry unnecessary weight too– of each failed attempt to care for someone or to see beyond my own needs. I look out into a world of increasing need and decreasing resources and add more weight. I face burnout square in the face because I choose to do ministry out of my own strength.
Though some of us (especially us “precisionists”) see every mistake we make in technicolor, we serve a God who highlights something entirely different.
God doesn’t need our help in ministry any more than a dad needs his 10-year-old kid’s help restoring the ’67 Camaro in his garage. If anything, we probably just slow Him down. He doesn’t need our help, He wants our help. He wants to include us, to make memories with us, to allow us, though we bring no skills to the table, to share in his excitement of the experience.
I think that is a picture of all of us in ministry. Let me tell you, it takes the pressure off.
Does a little kid worry about the Camaro’s gas mileage, the cost of the parts, or whether or not the project will get finished? NOPE. He trusts his daddy with the restoration process and focuses on the task he has just been handed the tool to accomplish. If he hands his daddy a Phillips head when he asks for a flathead, his daddy can handle it. That person we were too nervous to engage with? God will fill in the gap. If the prayer doesn’t come from someone else, well, everyone has access to the same divine safety net—the Holy Spirit—the one who does all the heavy lifting. That door unlocks from the inside and that weight is not for us to carry.
Jesus said to let the little ones come to Him. I think one reason was to highlight that, for the most part, kids don’t worry above their pay grade. They are happy to help, mostly because they want to hang out with you. They do the step they have been entrusted with, all the while thinking “Wow, my Daddy let me help!!” Simple. Joyful. They get it.
Lord, help me to serve You like a child, remembering that You supply the tools and instructions and You bear the weight. Thank You for the privilege and joy of sharing in Your restorative work. Amen.
Beautifully said!
Thank you!