Title: When Our Best Is Not Enough
Date: 2007-10-21
Reference: Luke 5: 1-11 All Saints One
"The New York Marathon is a 26 mile course through the boroughs of New York City. Not everyone completes the course, far more drop out than finish. The winning time is usually between two and three hours. Years ago a runner who had Cerebral Palsy finished the race dead last in eleven hours. She ran the race with the aid of crutches. When asked by a reporter why she even bothered.she said: “We live in such negative times. Things seem impossible. I thought if I could finish the race I would be an inspiration to others and maybe they would try big things too.” She added “The last eleven miles were an act of God.” She explained.”With eleven miles to go I ran out of strength. I didn’t have anymore. I finished the race of borrowed power. The power of God.”
There are two lessons for us in this account. First of all we are inspired by the examples of those who have gone before us, who have fought the good fight, who have been faithful. We build upon their legacy and we want to be found faithful as well. And secondly we know we can all depend on that borrowed power from God. Not even the gates of hell can prevail against the power God gives us. When we have done our best in any task, situation, or circumstance we can wait and trust because God is in control.
This time of year we celebrate the ministry and lives of the Saints who have preceded us in life and ministry. There is a very interesting historical display in the case just outside the church office, I hope you’ll take time to view. Included is a picture of the laying of our church corner stone in 1923.
Four men, the Bishop, two superintendents and the Senior Pastor standing on the site of what is now our beautiful sanctuary. Today, 84 years later, we gather in worship in the church building they planned and sacrificed to build. Today we build upon their legacy. Their example inspires us. We literally build upon the corner stone they left for us. I sometimes wonder what our congregation will be like in 2091 or in another 84 years. The very youngest among us this morning may still be here. What legacy are we leaving for them? Are the stones we are laying as secure as the ones we have received?
Many believe the Methodist Movement is on it’s last legs. I don’t know about that but we aren’t as vigorous as we once were. In the early days of our nation itinerant Circuit Riding Methodist Preachers cris-crossed the nation spreading the Good News of God’s Love. To become a circuit rider one needed to answer four questions affirmatively. Are you truly converted to Jesus Christ? Do you know and keep the rules? Can you preach acceptably? And most importantly. Do you have a horse? The earliest Circuit Riders were paid a yearly salary of $64.00. Most of these early preachers received little formal schooling. They communicated very effectively with uneducated frontier people. An educated cleric in another denomination asked Bishop Francis Asbury: “How is it you take men from the tail of a plow and without sending them to any college or divinity school set them to preach at once. And in a few years they become able ministers equal if not superior to our men trained in collegiate and theological halls?” Asbury responded: “We tell each other what we know and we use it at once.” The only study required was: The Bible, the hymn book, and Mr. Wesley’s sermons.
These were men of iron will.
They kept the faith in difficult circumstances, trusting in God’s care and providence. The early preaching places included taverns, cabins, stores, poorhouses, forts, barns, woodland clearings, and river boats. In our own case, under a hanging tree. On one occasion a Methodist Preacher spoke in a gambling house. Someone said: “In Jesus’ time some made the house of God a den of thieves. Now the Methodists have changed a den of thieves into a house of God.” They faced hostile Indians, bears, wolves, blizzards, swollen creeks, unchartered forests and robbers. They were often wet, cold, and hungry, tired and saddle sore. Many died before they reached their 35th birthday. They depended on strength from God. They allowed God to work in and through them. They did their best and then allowed God to do the rest. A proverbial saying in that day was: “The weather is so bad today there is nothing out and about but crows and Methodist Preachers.”
This is the proud heritage we celebrate. But apathy has crept into many of our congregations. We have more Bibles, buildings, class rooms, music and resources than ever before. People are involved in church activities while they are indifferent to obedience. Church leaders are often more concerned with numbers then discipling people to lead Godly lives. The lifestyles of many Christian people are very different from the lives of unbelievers. Apathy is suffocating God’s work and the church’s spiritual growth. We wear ourselves out worrying about why we are not more successful. I believe those who went before us were faithful without any guarantees of success. They did what they could and let Jesus do the rest. The early Methodist People in Pueblo had no idea how things would turn out. They just did what Jesus had called them to do. Build a church here on this ground, on this location. They did so. In 1888 our congregation here was facing financial problems. Work on the church steeple was stopped because of a lack of money. One member wrote: “The work on the steeple doesn’t seem to progress very rapidly. But there is no hurry. The tower is open to the rain, but it doesn’t rain here very often.”
We do the best we can to be faithful but we know there are times when our best is not enough. Today’s Scripture reading is a lesson on what to do when our best is not enough. Life and ministry can be tough at times and we are tempted at times to give up. Those saints who preceded us did not give up, nor should we.
The disciples had worked hard all night and had caught nothing. Later they went out for a ten minute trip and caught more than they ever had. The same lake, the same boat, the same nets and the same people fishing. What made the difference? Jesus made the difference. Jesus was in the boat with the disciples. His presence always makes a huge difference. This time the disciples weren’t fishing alone. God was with them.
God is not interested in seeing us fail. God wants his sons and daughters to be successful in life, successful in our personal, family, spiritual and church life. God wants our ministry here to be successful. But God has not called us to be successful. God calls us to be faithful. We must cooperate with God’s plan in our lives. Jesus told the disciples where to fish, when to fish and how to fish. When God is guiding our lives and ministry we cannot fail.
Peter may have been thinking if he didn’t catch anything at night he certainly wasn’t going to catch anything in the middle of the day when the sun was glaring down on the water. Peter didn’t ask questions, he just obeyed. He didn’t listen to his feelings. They had worked hard all night they were tired. They wanted to go home and rest. Peter didn’t ask “what’s the use of trying again.” He seemed eager to cooperate with Jesus’ plan. Jesus said “launch out into the deep waters.” Usually the big fish are in the deep water. Only minnows are in the shallow water. Most of us live and attempt to minister in shallow waters of life. We are content to work around the edges never going into deep water. Never challenging ourselves. Never taking on bold projects for God. Someone has said: “Many Christians never get their feet wet because they are afraid of getting in over their heads.” God says: “Let me direct your ministry. Cooperate with me.”
Peter wasn’t depending on his own fishing ability and he wasn’t afraid of failure. When we have Christ in our boat and when we put God’s plan for us in our hearts we should expect great things. God blessed the disciples with more fish than they could handle. They actually shared the catch with other boats in order to stay afloat.
God wants to bless our lives and our church. God wants to bless us so much we will have to share that blessing with others in order to keep from sinking. God not only wants to bless our lives and our church, but God wants to bless other people through us.
This was a turning point for Peter. Peter believed if Jesus could perform a miracle like that, Jesus could do anything he wanted to do. There are times when we could get cynical about our ministry. Remember Peter didn’t say: “Lord I have worked all night ten long hours and didn’t catch anything. That must mean there are no more fish in the lake.” Peter knew the fish were there, he just had not caught them yet. I believe it’s always too soon to give up. We should try again with Jesus in our boat. His presence will make all the difference. Jesus calls us to do what we can. Row the boat out from shore a bit. Volunteer to feed our youth, teach a class, attend worship regularly, give faithfully, serve faithfully, pray always. We should never worry so much about what we cannot do. Rather we should concentrate on what we can and should do and leave the rest to God. This is the way it’s always been.
In doing our very best we honor the lives and legacy of those who have gone on before. Those who have preceded us and provided a stone upon which to build. Our continued faithfulness is our way of telling them their sacrifices were not in vain. And in our life and ministry, when our very best is not enough, we invite Jesus to remain in the boat with us."
