Friday, October 15

For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God has prepared in advance for him to do.                                 Ephesians 2:10

Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”

“What do you want me to do for you,” he asked.

They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”

“You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”

“We can,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. Those places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”

Mark 10: 35-45

About seven years ago, I met an angry man named Jeff Ward. He was angry because the construction crews working on our new West Campus property were starting work before 7 am, which was a violation of a local ordinance – and a violation of Jeff’s enjoyment of the morning. He called my office phone repeatedly – finally threatening to disrupt our East Campus worship by playing his electric guitar in our parking lot during services if we didn’t find a way to get the construction crew to respect the ordinance. We were finally able to get the construction crew to wait until 7 am to begin – and I figure I had heard the last from Mr. Ward. Not so!

To my surprise, he walked into the East Campus lobby a few days later saying, “I complained when the work started too early, so it’s only right that I thank you when you got it to stop.” And that’s the day that Jeff and I began a very unlikely and unusual friendship. He was very clear with me that he was not a Christian, didn’t attend a church, and was very skeptical about organized religion. But he was very smart, wickedly funny – and honest. I tried to be honest back with him – about myself, my faith, and the weaknesses – as well as the strengths – of the church, and of FBCG.

Eventually Jeff learned more about FBCG and the variety of ministries our people are passionate about. He was particularly interested in ministries to “forgotten people” – the poor, the homeless, and those in prison. At the time we had several folks who were visiting young men incarcerated in a local facility – and Jeff began to give money to FBCG to help with this cause.

To make a long story short, Jeff eventually got a job writing a kind of political/social commentary column in a local newspaper.  A couple of weeks ago he wrote a very critical column (as most of his columns are) about a political figure – but in the midst of his comments, he had this to say about FBCG:

“And there just happens to be a local congregation that takes social justice very seriously…This congregation clearly understands that faith is a verb – it only works when you put it into practice.”

That is so cool! Here is a guy who is not a Christian, who does not believe Jesus is who I believe he is, but who sees something genuine, something true, something attractive in the way people from FBCG serve the world! This reminds me that it is rarely our words, our statement of faith, or our theological arguments that lead people to Jesus – rather it’s what they see in us that allows them to see Jesus.

It turns out that the little boy in Tuesdays story – the boy who wanted the first pancake – was right: “You get to be Jesus today!”

Ask the Lord to show you an opportunity to be like him today.

 Brian Coffey