On Hold

ATTENTION

ME

As a pastor, I spend a lot of time in hospitals. To this point that’s been as a vistor and not as a patient. Of course, I realize that if I don’t die suddenly in some way, the day will come when I will not be the visitor, I will be the visited . . . and with my family history, that could very well be heart trouble.

Let’s say I’m in the hospital and they’ve diagnosed some blockages in my heart arteries. I’ve come in on the weekend and, of course, most of the doctors are off. But, there’s this one heart surgeon they tell me about. They say, “Now you’ll have to wait till the middle of next week for your surgery unless you let Dr. Smith do it.”

I say, “Well, tell me something about Dr. Smith. Why is he here on the weekend?”

“Well, its because he’s not all that busy through the week, and he really likes to do surgery, so he works on the weekend.”

I ask, as of course you’d ask if it were you: “What do you mean, he’s not very busy. Why isn’t he busy?”

The nurse looks a little flustered and she finally answers, “Well, it’s because of Dr. Smith’s background.”

Now, I’m getting nervous. I ask, “What’s wrong with his background? Where did he do his residency?”

“Well,” she answers, really nervous by now, “He didn’t do a residency.”

“He didn’t do a residency! Why not?!” I ask.

“Well,” she says, “He figured that there were so many people dying with heart disease and that they needed so many doctors, he just needed to skip residency and go straight into practice.”

Of course, by now I really afraid. I ask, “Well, why are you trying to get me to let him do my surgery??”

“Well,” she answers, “You really need surgery, and he really needs practice. Besides, he’s been waiting for just the right surgery to come along. He wants something really complicated so he can really hone his operating skill, and he’s willing to give your surgery a try.”

Now, do you think I’d let that guy close to me with a scalpel? Absolutely not!!!

What’s the point of that foolish story? Just this: When you look for someone to work for us or on us, we want someone who has the ability that only comes with experience. If you’re looking for someone to do your surgery, seed your lawn, build your house, or fix your car, those are the people, you might say, you put on “speed dial.” They are the people who have paid the price to gain the experience that leads to superior ability. They are the people who were willing to take the time to learn by doing the little tasks. They are the people who had the patience to wait for their opportunity. They were the ones who didn’t chafe when they were “on hold” you might say waiting for their experience to catch up with their desire.

Now we understand that principle in the world of sports and even in the business world, but it’s a little harder to grasp in the church world. In the church world, we tend to think that God is like the desperate pastor who’s got to find a warm body to stick in the nursery to watch kids so that his whole church doesn’t fall apart. We tend to think that God is so desperate, He’s not willing to wait. I want you to know . . . that isn’t God. God isn’t anxiously wringing His hands, taking whomever He can trick into serving Him. No, actually, God’s call comes to some very specific people who have usually gone through a very specific process. They are the people who have been willing to learn and develop and haven’t hung up the phone of service because they feel like they’ve been placed on “hold.”

YOU - NEED

And, of course, I really want you to listen! Now don’t just do it because it will make me feel good. Do it for the truth that might invade your life. See I know that some of you are confused. You thought you had surrendered to do the Will of God, but nothing seems to be happening. You thought by now that He would have moved you out to another job, or stood you up behind a pulpit, but nothing’s happening. You’re just kinda stuck in the same old place. I want you to listen, because you may hear the “why” behind your confusion. You may come to understand why nothing’s been happening.

Some of you need to listen because you’re disillusioned. You look around you and notice the attitude of other Christian workers. They may teach a class in our children’s ministry, and all they can do is gripe and tell you about how soon they’re going to quit. You, on the other hand, took your job in that ministry with high hopes. You had dreams, but then you started to listen to the wrong people. The more they complained the more you began to doubt. They complained about the kids; they complained about the materials; they complained about the materials; they complained about going to two services and their complaining slowly emptied your “joy bucket” till now you’re trying minister from an empty heart. I want you to listen this morning. God’s Word may be able to give you the right reason to stick with it.

Still others feel exploited. You give and give and give and work so hard only to look around and see others dropping out. Kids are demanding more and more. You’ve been criticized for the way you’ve done things. You feel used and abused and you’re about ready to quit. God can reignite your passion if you’ll let him.

You see the answer for the confused, the disillusioned and the exploited is to begin to see this whole “call of God thing” the way He sees it. It’s to begin to value it like He values it. Its to forget about the opinion of many and covet the approval of one. It is to be willing to wait for God’s “then” while working in the “here and now.”

BACKGROUND

That’s how it worked for Samuel. He really didn’t go out looking for the call of God and he certainly didn’t wait around to receive it. No, he got busy serving God right where he was and I believe that is one important reason God called him.

TRANSITION

If that is true, then what was it about Samuel service that so prepared him for the call he received? Well, when you look at what the Bible says about this interesting little boy (for that’s what He was when he was called), you’ll see some patterns that characterized his servants and which might bear repeating. In the first place

HE

EXPLANATION

DIV 1 - HIS SERVICE WAS PRACTICAL

In 3:15, it says that Samuel “opened the doors of the house of the Lord.” We’ve already been told in chapter 2 that Samuel was working in the temple with Eli, and that, according to the pleasure Eli took in what Samuel was doing, he must have been Eli’s right hand man. The simple truth was, Samuel made no demands and asked no special treatment. He just did what needed to be done. His service was practical. He didnt’ mind doing the “little jobs.” He didn’t demand that Eli turn him into a preacher or guarantee him recognition. He was practical and he was joyfully serving right where he was.

APP 1

Which is just what you and I should be doing! We should long to be in the place where God can use us and where He can call us to that place He wants for us to be. If that’s going to happen in our lives, it will be because we begin to serve Him practically. What I mean is, we can serve Him in the way our service is really needed. So many people claim to want to serve God, but they want to serve Him on their own terms. They want to do their own special “pet projects.” They’re the kind of people that will come to the staff with a ministry idea. They may have never worked in the church before; they’ve never demonstrated that they are trustworthy; they’ve never demonstrated that they’re a team player, but they want you to invest in them and the pet project they want to get started. They’re sort of like that heart surgeon that wants to do your surgery even though he’s never been through a residency. Their goal isn’t to serve the Lord, its really to scratch their own itch. Their service isn’t practical; it doesn’t have the right goal.

Now, don’t misunderstand me here. I am not saying that God isn’t calling you to some kind of ministry that we’ve never had before. He, indeed, might be. In fact, I am confident that, in some cases, He is. All I am saying is it may take some time for the right doors to open, so, in the meantime, don’t sit around waiting for the perfect opportunity to display your skill. Join the team now and do practical service.

That may mean you pick up a paint brush. That may mean you put on a choir robe. That may mean you change a dirty diaper. That may mean you greet others at the welcome center. While you are on hold waiting for God’s ultimate will, get busy doing God’s immediate will. Join the team!

Illustration

I have been, throughout my life, a Dallas Cowboys fan. But, I have to tell you, being a Cowboys fan is getting harder and harder. For those of you who follow professional football, two letters will tell you why, “T, O.” T. O. stands for Terrell Owens, the loud-mouthed, but talented wide receiver who was cut by the Philadelphia Eagles, not because he wasn’t any good, but because, even though he is one of the best receivers to ever play the game, he just wasn’t worth the trouble he kept causing.

When he was in Philadelphia, he publically criticized his own quarterback, Donovan McNabb for “running out of gas” when they lost to the New England Patriots. Instead of offering and apology, he asked for a new contract and was kicked off the team. That’s where the Cowboys came in. Always on the look out for hopelessly troubled players with legendary talent, they signed T.O. Ok, well, maybe he learned his lesson right?

Wrong. This year in the middle of a season that could have been stellar, it happened again. T. O. Accused his quarterback, Tony Romo of favoring the tight end, Jason Witten, over him when it comes to throwing the ball. One player said of Owens:

"He's insecure about it," one player said of Owens. "The thing that bothers me more than anything about this problem is that it's always something with him -- San Fran, Philly and here; always something. ... T.O. talks to him and so now he probably thinks Witten politics with Tony for the ball.

"That's so far from the truth. You think Tony is throwing to him because that's his buddy? ... It's crazy to think that, and I hate that he acts that way."

Owens declined to discuss the matter.

And for the record, he has 55 catches for 848 yards. Witten has 64 for 771.

I guess no one’s told T.O. that there’s no “I” in “team”! And for Terrell Owens, there’s obviously no “we” in team either.

I want you to know, church, God doesn’t sign any spiritual T. O.’s to serve Him! He calls those people who are willing to serve practically wherever they are needed. He calls those people who don’t come with their own agendas, but who are willing to surrender to Him. He calls those who serve practically, then He also calls those who are willing to serve sincerely.

DIV 2 - HIS SERVICE WAS SINCERE:

The writer of 1Samuel interweaves the innocence and goodness of Samuel with the wickedness and greed of Hophni and Phineas. Notice in 2:11 it says that “the child ministered to the Lord . . .” and that statement precedes the description of the awful wickedness of Hophni and Phineas. Then again in 2:18, that phrase is repeated and this time we have the contrasting conjunction, “but” added to the verse. It gives you the sense like this. “Hophni and Phineas were scoundrels, BUT!!!! Samuel ministered before the Lord. In the temple that was contaminated by the awful hypocrisy of those two scoundrels, Samuel was the real deal.

And the bible gives us a hint as to what made the difference between the scoundrels and Samuel. There is a curious phrase that keeps poppling up in Chapter 2 and 3. You see it three times actually. In verse 11 the Bible says that Samuel ministered TO the Lord. Again in 2:18 you see it, but this time with the preposition, “before”. It says, “Samuel ministered BEFORE the Lord. Then, on down in 3:1, it pops up again: It says, “Samuel ministered TO the Lord. You see, I believe his service was sincere. He was doing what he was doing because it came from his heart. It might not have seemed very important when he opened those doors in the morning, but when Samuel did it, I believe he might have just whispered to God and said, “Hey, Lord. This job may not seem very big to other people, but I know it’s what you’ve called me to do, so I’m going to do it out of my love for you. You see, in the final analysis, Samuel wasn’t serving Eli, he was serving the Lord.

APP2 SINCERELY.

Very simply that just means that God calls those who are serving with the right motivation. Now, sometimes it can be a little hard to know if you have the right motivation, I suppose, so how can you tell? How can you tell if you have the right motivation?

Well you can start by asking yourself a couple of important questions. The first one is this: Who’s focused on you and does it matter? Are you looking for applause? Are you doing what you are doing so that other people will look at you and say “wow!” Are you sacrificing because you are wanting others to recognize just how much you serve God even when it hurts? Are you giving what you give so that others will be impressed and so that maybe you might get an appointment to the finance committee?

This is such a subtle temptation. It’s so easy to hide our own motives from ourselves. Often we just walk around with a background of disquiet in our spirit because we’ve allowed the wrong motive to enter into our hearts and we may not even be aware of it. So who is focused on you, and does it matter to you?

The second question you ask when you want to evaluate what is motvating you is this: On whom are you focused? On God or on man? You see, when I focus on man I will always be too concerned about what others think of me; when I focus on God, I will be concerned about what He thinks of me. I will seek to glorify Him through my work period. Even when I have to go against what another believer may think, I am calm because I know He will take care of me, and I am surrendered to His will.

ILLUSTRATION

Elliot Huck, a 14-year-old from Bloomington, Indiana, decided to skip a preliminary to the National Spelling Bee. Though he placed 45th out of more than 250 spellers in last year's competition and was a favored to go again, he felt convicted to stay home this time around. More precisely, he felt convicted to stay in church. The 2007 Bloomington Herald-Times championship was held on March 4, 2007—a Sunday. In Huck's eyes, the competition conflicted with his view of the biblical commandment to rest on the Sabbath.

"I always try to glorify God with what I do in the spelling bee because he is the one who gave me the talent for spelling," said Elliot. "Now I think I'm going to not spell and try to give glory to God in that."

It certainly wasn't an easy choice for Elliot. He loved his time in Washington D.C. at last year's competition and was looking forward to more of the same. Even so, the expert speller concluded, "I have just accepted that God knows what's best, and I'm just going to do what he says."

He’s learned the secret: Whether he’s liked or he’s hated; whether he’s understood or he’s rejected; whether you agree with him or think he’s flipped his lid, he has his heart wrapped around God. He’s sincerely serving whether he gets to do the thing he wants or not. He is serving sincerely, and here’s the most important thing about it: That’s the kind of person God will call. That’s the one God has on speed dial. God calls those who serve sincerely and those who serve practically, but he also calls those who

DIV 3 - HIS SERVICE WAS FAITHFUL

Now you need to know that if anyone ever had a reason to quit, or to never start, it was Samuel. Here, his mother had made this vow, but he was the one who suffered for it. He was consigned to spend the rest of his life paying off a debt his mother had made. Meanwhile, the Bible says that Samuel ministered to the Lord. The verbal construction of that phrase, “Ministered to the Lord” suggests ongoing service. He ministered and he kept on ministering. He was faithful; he was sincere, and He was practical.

And I believe that was why God took note, and, when He was ready to move, He called Samuel into His service. Samuel, you see, was on God’s “speed dial.”

SERVE FAITHFULLY

It’s easy to start, but so hard to finish, isn’t it? It’s so easy to go part of the way, then quit when things get hard. You see it happen all around you. The person who is truly faithful is so very hard to find, so, do you have the right dependability? Do you show up when its inconvenient? How many raindrops does it take to keep you out of church? How many snide remarks can you take before you cash in your chips of service? How many disappointments does it take for you to get so discouraged that you pull the plug on your calling? Are you faithful? Are you dependable? Are you ready to serve, no matter where it might be, or are you like this guy:

ILLUSTRATION

DVD - MY CALLING

Can you see yourself in that video? I tell you there is no substitute for faithfulness.

After his ordination in 1969, author and pastor Phillip Johnson received a call to serve one large church and ten smaller churches on the northern coast of Newfoundland, Canada. On the first day of his new circuit ministry, Johnson learned that in order to get to the smallest of the churches, he would have to travel 40 miles by snowmobile to a tiny village. When Johnson arrived, only one person had shown up for worship—a fisherman who had traveled about 20 miles to get there.

Johnson initially thought about just saying a prayer and calling it a day. But then he realized that together, he and the fisherman had already logged 60 miles of travel and had 60 more miles to return home. With that in mind, Johnson decided to conduct the whole service as if there were a few hundred worshipers. They did it all: the hymns, the readings, the prayers, the sermon, the Lord's Supper, and the benediction.

It was during the sermon that Johnson wondered why he had bothered. The fisherman never looked up. But when Johnson greeted the fisherman at the door and thanked him for coming, Johnson received a pleasant surprise. The fisherman said, "Reverend, I've been thinking about becoming a Christian for about 30-odd years. And today's the day!"

O listen! There’s no substitute for faithfulness! You won’t develop it after God calls you! No you won’t! O I know that’s what we think. We think we’ll get knocked down by a light like Paul did on the road to Damascus, we’ll be called to the mission field, and immediately we’ll become a faithful soul winner willing to log 90 hours a week when we won’t even show up for 3 or 4 hours on Sunday. Hear me, believer, the Christian life doesn’t work that way! Faithfulness is the character that is forged in the lonely, day-in, day-out unimportant mundane duty of the Christian life, and no one gets on God’s speed dial without it! But if we come to Christ with open hearts; If we are willing to serve wherever the need is; If we are sincere in that service, wanting only to worship God and glorify Him; and if we serve Him when its easy and when its hard, we might just find our names on God’s speed dial

WE

And what could happen in a church that was that committed to Christ? What, for instance, would happen if we worked practically. What would happen if it didn’t really matter what we did as long as we got to serve Christ? What if we abolished our “hierarchy” of service and finally realized that God cares no more for the preacher than He does for the janitor, and what if you and me, every one of us were willing to do whatever it took to give glory to God?

Well, I believe we’d be shocked at how smoothly things would run. I believe every job would be filled. The days of begging for workers would be over! I don’t think Rae would have to chase down children’s workers or worry that the ones who taught children weren’t doing it for the right reason. I don’t think that David would have to look out over the congregation with a breaking heart because some of the people who ought to be up here are down there. I think we’d have enough money to do what needs to be done and we wouldn’t have to worry every January whether there’d be enough to carry out our ministries for the year.

And what would happen if we worked with the right motivation? What if we really didn’t care who saw us working for God? What if all we cared about was ministering to the Lord, not trying to impress others?

Well, I believe we’d have a church where there would be no griping. We would genuinely serve God not our own needs. And we’d have an over abundance of workers. We’d have a waiting list of people who wanted to work in the nursery and fill other positions, not because they wanted prestige, but because they simply wanted to show Jesus how much they really loved Him.

And what would happen if we worked faithfully? Well it would mean that no child would ever have to show up to an empty classroom because their teacher wasn’t here yet. It would mean that every year you’d hear the names of child after child who had come to Christ in Sunday School. It would mean that moms and dads would faithfully be reached with the gospel because we refused to let even one prospect get by us without at least our attempting to share the gospel with them.

And what would it mean for you? Well, it would just mean that you’d be on God’s speed dial? You would be connected with Him in a way you’ve never been connected before and you would receive a joy from Him that is beyond description and it all begins with your answer to 3 questions:

Are you serving Him practically? Are you following His agenda for you and doing what’s right in front of you or are you waiting for the perfect opportunity?

Are you serving Him sincerely? Are you doing what you are doing for the right reasons? Is your heart wrapped around Him and His approval, or is it wrapped around what others think?

Are you serving Him faithfully? Are you being tempted to quit, or have you already quit? If so, let me tell you what you need to tell the Lord today: God, I’ll do what you want me to do; I’ll do it for the right reasons, and I’ll keep on doing it till You tell me to stop.