Things That Give Me Peace
by LewisIn 1983 Harold Washington became the first black mayor of Chicago. I happened to live in a Chicago suburb at the time, and it was big news everywhere around “that toddlin’ town.” My next door neighbor, Steve, was a life-long Chicago-area resident with lots of family scattered around that unique northeast corner of Illinois, including a cousin who was a Chicago city cop.
Steve told me that his cousin was in a gang task force that, just a few nights before Washington was to take office, corralled a group of young black men who appeared to these professional officers to be a gang. The police had the suspects up against a wall and were searching them for guns and contraband when one of them suddenly turned around and faced the officers.
There was a moment of tension, but it turned into laughter when the young man spoke. “When Harold becomes Mayor,” he said, “this ****’s gonna stop!”
I think that fits WCB’s picture of expecting that things are going to be a certain way (e.g. “my way”) if a certain event occurs or if a certain position is obtained.
It could be that most of us have, somewhere along the line, practiced that kind of thinking, and it is only natural to imagine what you might do if you were in a position of leadership or in a role of authority. What is slightly more dangerous, or at least has more potential for danger, is seeking a position for the power that comes with it so that you can fulfill some kind of personal agenda.
But when it comes to the selection of elders for a church body, there is a bright side to all this that gives me peace, and it is that we are not in this alone.
Aside from all the other help we get, God is in it, and he is the one who makes the ultimate selection of elders. I’ve seen him use all kinds of tools and methods along the way to weed out those he doesn’t want in the job at a particular time and place, and I’ve seen him use various tools and methods to get those in whom he does want. I’ve seen men try to get in for selfish reasons, but I’ve only ever seen one succeed. Within a month he was done with the role, eldership not being the platform he envisioned.
It also gives me peace to know that personal agendas are very difficult to promote within an eldership. Yes, it can be done, but it is very, very rare. There is just no room for it.
And finally, it gives me peace to know the power of prayer. May we all be using that power as we prepare for our elder selection process!
May 29th, 2008 at 10:58 pm
When something is really important to us, why do we only suggest or think of prayer? Why not prayer and fasting? This is important enough that we should tap into an arsenal of spiritual weapons.
May 29th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
An interesting question. (And not in the euphemistic sense.) But tangential to the topic, I think, so rather than letting a discussion of this sort get buried in a place where it might not be found, how about writing a post describing fasting as a spiritual weapon?
May 30th, 2008 at 10:04 am
Okay, and to re-rail this conversation, I submit another comment:
By “personal agenda,” I assume you mean some goal that promotes the person or their projects ahead of promoting Jesus and the health of his church body. I can understand the concern over having personal agendas in the eldership, and it reassures me to hear you say that it’s difficult to promote them.
Practically speaking, though, I’m more concerned that our men may be so humble that they won’t want to step into the position at all. So I am watching with great curiosity how God will “use various tools and methods to get those in whom he does want.”
May 30th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Yes, you are interpreting “personal agenda” correctly. Such agendas are often disguised as being “for the good of the church,” and sometimes they may carry some benefit for the church, but within a strong eldership they rarely get far.
As to the “various tools,” allow me to encourage you not only to watch God at work, but also to be willing to be one of those tools God might use for his purposes — with our without your knowledge.