Last Sunday, I said farewell (for now) to Jon-Paul who first joined our church family a couple months ago. Those of us at The Hub enjoyed seeing his smiling face each week and we were sad to see his career take him, once again, on the road. We all celebrate with him returning to his home but will miss having him here. At the risk of embarrassing him, one trait everyone appreciated was how forward he was about speaking with others. On day 1, he was already a part of the family.
As we were saying our goodbyes, he and I got in a conversation about the lessons he's learned from moving around so frequently. As a result of moving from place to place, Jon-Paul learned to never take a moment for granted. He shared experiences he had in taking a little time with someone in order to make a huge impact. His short time with me made a huge impact.
As he was sharing, I started thinking of the story of Philip and the Ethiopian. Philip finds himself attending a divine appointment between himself and a royal official from the African continent who was studying Old Testament prophecies. After explaining the Bible to him, we see this exchange...
36 As they were traveling down the road, they came to some water. The [Ethiopian] said, “Look, there’s water. What would keep me from being baptized?” 38 So he ordered the chariot to stop, and both Philip and the [Ethiopian] went down into the water, and he baptized him. (Acts 8:36,38)
I can't help but think how different Philip's actions might be if he was a part of a modern, American church. Perhaps he would have insisted on waiting for a period of time before baptizing the Ethiopian. Maybe he would have first waited for a church vote to confirm his commitment. Maybe he would have made the Ethiopian go through classes to prove he "really meant it" before taking the plunge. Philip doesn't do any of these things; instead, he looked towards the opportunity to connect and acted without hesitation.
We are a culture of planners and have become risk adverse in everything we do. We don't want to befriend the wrong person or invest emotions in a relationship we think might not be the most beneficial. Sometimes this causes us to get in the way of doing things God has laid before us. We let cautiousness or self-preservation take the place of conviction and calling.
There should be a sense of recklessness about following Christ. Nothing about our path is certain or guaranteed. The only guarantee we have, in following Christ, is the guarantee that we serve a higher purpose and that this purpose is worth whatever the cost.
Though we only had Jon-Paul in our services for a short time, he left a big impression on me and I hope to stay in contact with him for many years. We all need people in our lives to push us, challenge us, and affirm for us things which are uncertain. Sometimes being reckless is a little easier when you know you aren't doing it alone.
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