It was the anniversary week that marked a date of questionable celebration. The week my mentor and best friend had spent as many years out of ordained ministry as he had spent in it. That is it. That is all I received in my email. A simple sentence, yet there is so much more lying beneath the surface of those typed words.
This is a man who led me to Christ and has been my adviser for two decades. He has touched as many lives out of the pulpit as he had in it. The same week my dear friend had been pondering the synergy of a ministry, I had been grappling with a spiritual thought nugget that kept resurfacing in my studies – Is it better to be a reservoir or a canal? There are many pithy quotes on the subject. If you want to be wise, be a reservoir and wait until you are filled. Nourish out of abundance. Still another suggests a canal to be best. In this way, we are simply aligning ourselves with God and becoming empty vessels. No need to concern ourselves with supply issues. God provides.
If we store up, before we minister to those in need, are we wasting time? Will we only reap what we sow and not sow as much, or will we accomplish more? In contrast, if we are canals, with nothing reserved from which to draw, will we continue to be replenished with an inexhaustible supply making the reservoir obsolete? What a challenge! I have been amazed at how many times this theme has come up in my reading. Even more surprising is how many authors have biblical backup for their theories. Frankly, I don’t know who is “right?” I’m thinking this is pretty subjective. God probably does what he does and we can’t place a formula to it. I’m quite sure if I chose to be a reservoir, he’d decide I would have made a better canal, or vice versa. So, on this one, I’m going to just continue to place it on my list of questions to bring to Heaven!
Nevertheless, as I celebrated my own anniversary, a birthday, I looked down at my birthday candles and found the answer which my special friend might have offered. While I had been struggling back and forth with the answers . . . reservoir? No. Canal? No. I heard my mentor's voice in my head (this happens a lot) . . . “It is neither a reservoir nor a canal. It’s a flame.” I laughed! So like him, of course! He would have some completely different spin on how to dispense our God given gifts and blessings, be it tangible or intangible. Almost immediately I recalled a scripture he used in a blessing he led for our two families at the beach one summer. "…. fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you. . ." (2 Tim 1:6) We don’t have to “become” anything. We already have the flame in us! As he described, there are certain things we have that can be taken from us. Water is an example of such a thing. If we have a glass of water – or a reservoir for that matter – and we gave some away, we would have less. But, as followers of Christ Jesus, we have an inextinguishable fire inside of us. Like a candle, we can give away some of our fire and still possess the same amount. A reservoir can dry up. A canal only disburses what it receives, but the fire of Christ Jesus burning in us – this gift, if fanned into flame will continue to burn and we can give it away all we want without depleting the source. Of course, there are those standing watch ready to throw a veritable reservoir on your flame in an attempt to squelch it. But, this flame, from the Divine, cannot be extinguished, only made brighter. Maybe I won’t need to put this question on my list after all!Ministry is not confined to the pulpit anymore than church is confined to a building. It is about God’s people fanning the flame of the gifts they have been given, and then going out and, with that flame, winning those souls for Jesus. I am grateful for my sweet friend who continues to exemplify this with his life.
Abba Father, You are so incredible. Thank You for giving us the freedom to worship You and ask all of the heady questions, even if we never figure out the answers to them. Thank You for listening to us and for allowing us to have a relationship with You and for giving us amazing people, mentors, that we can do life with, journeying through both mountaintops and valleys. Thank You for the people of the ECC in Capljina, Bosnia who never stop fanning their flames, no matter the odds, as they continue to win souls for Your kingdom. We praise you for all You do, all You are going to do and especially all You delight to do through us and the precious gifts You have given us. In Your precious son Jesus’ name, Amen
In awesome wonder to our Mighty God,
Kathy
