Scripture
I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing. John 5:19-20
Our family reunion in July 2006. There are 43 in our family now, so not all could come.
Observation
We can push, we can prod, we can placate, we can persuade, but in the end the only life that leaves a dent in eternity is one that finishes what God has already begun. Works that begin with me will end with me. But when I take the time to discover where God is already at work and add on to what he has started then my works eventually end in him.
The choice is simple. I can have a made-up life, where I stumble along the road looking for the map, or I can have a God-made life that begins by asking, “What is he up to today?â€
God loves interdependence. The Christian faith started as a Father & Son business, and at its simplest and best it is the same for each of us. My life is a partnership of Father & Son. What matters most is not what we achieve but the relationship we develop in the working.
In the summer of my first year in college I came home to find my father framing a wall in the family room. Dad and building bonded together like hammer and nails. I usually tried to be as invisible as possible lest I would be “invited†to help. I have vivid memories as an eight year old of hiding under the basement stairs while Dad packed tools hoping he’d never find me. It never worked. Dads have radar.
In the summer of 1980 I took a different trajectory. I offered to help. Over the nights and weekends of the summer we built his home office. The walls were lined with floor to ceiling walnut-toned bookcases. We wrapped the rest of the room in a wainscot of woody tones. At the end of that summer I think I remember asking not to be paid in cash. Instead I asked for a pocket watch that I still treasure. The permanent mark of the whole experience was learning to cooperate, work willingly, follow the plan of another, and to enjoy many deep conversations along the way. These were principles that would guide the rest of my life.
At some point we have the opportunity to choose to work along side of the Father. Sure we can out smart him, out maneuver him, and do our own thing…for a moment. But soon ahead we discover that the God we left behind is in fact one step ahead of us. There is another workshop ahead. Again we see him in a pool of lamplight bending over the workbench, his tool belt laden with worn tools, and shaving curls of wood giving way to his sharpened chisel. We stand silently in the doorway, but he hears us. Father’s can feel the presence of their children. He turns and lights the room with his smile. He steps back from the workbench, proffers a chisel and invites us to have a turn with the tools for ourselves. The Father is at work and he is inviting us to work with him. What happens next is our choice.
My parents, Charles and Roberta McCallum
Application
Yesterday I read a snippet out of the book The Heart of the Pastor¸ where H.B. London and Neil Wiseman remark that as pastors our love for Christ is proved by feeding and caring for the sheep. That means that a pastor’s form of devotion is not just with a Bible in hand in the morning hours, but in the face and heart of each person he serves. The work of pastoral ministry is an act of devotion to Christ. Caring well for the saints is my way of expressing love toward him. The depth of my love is proved in the quality of my care for the sheep. Shepherding is the family business.
Me and my folks at Dad’s 80th November 2003
Prayer
Father, I’ve been here before, but how often I try to make up what’s next rather than to follow the sawdust to where you are working. Show me the place in the workshop where you are. Help me to be of help in your workshop. I’ll start with sweeping the floor. And if there are other works to do I’m willing. Amen.
My five brothers and sisters gathered for my Dad’s 80th birthday November 1, 2003
