Literally.
Not in the wow I haven’t showered since Monday kind of way.
No.
In the wow I’ve been shoveling pig poop for 4 weeks and I cant a scrub the smell off of my skin kind of way!
Here at El Shaddai, I clean pig pens. At the beginning of the month, our sweet host gave us the opportunity to choose which morning ministry we would like to participate in: cleaning, cooking, painting, fencing, etc. etc. etc.
I chose pigs.
Some might say I was “called” to it. Some might say I’m a crazy animal lover. Really, I just wondered what Jesus could teach me through pigs. I wondered jokingly at first, and then I felt Jesus rise to the challenge, so to speak. It was as if I had laughed at him and said, “I bet you can’t mold my heart with pig poop,” and he immediately responded by standing up and saying, “Watch me.”
So, I chose pigs.
And guess what? He really did mold my heart with pig poop! You know, sometimes you find yourself in a pig pen with a shovel, a broom, and a hose, and approximately 4 wheelbarrows full of poop to roll to the garden and scrub off the floor. Sometimes you work with 4 other friends who talk and laugh and also smell like pigs. Those days are precious. They’re not only precious because you get to know those friends on a deeper level and laugh at inside jokes for months to come, but also because there are days that aren’t so precious. Sometimes you work alone. The funny thing about working alone is that the number of pigs don’t change according to the number of workers. Whether there are 5 of you or 1 of you, there are still approximately 30 pigs, approximately 20 pens, and approximately 4 wheelbarrows of poop.
Moreover, sometimes you’re not working with pigs at all. Sometimes you are working with people. With people you aren’t shoveling poop, but you are wading through years and years of a different kind of crap. You walk into a friendship with a heart full of love, a past full of understanding, and the truth of the word of God, and you have approximately a lifetime of pain to heal in the name of Jesus through the power of his Spirit. Sometimes we can work with 4 other friends who support and encourage- those days are precious. They aren’t only precious because you get to know those friends on a deeper level and walk through the hard times together, like Jesus intended. They’re precious because sometimes you walk alone. And when there is only one disciple of Jesus who is obediently discipling others, the number of souls who desperately need Jesus and desperately need friends to walk alongside them does not change.
Swaziland is full of souls. El Shaddai is full of souls.
America is full of souls. Your city is full of souls.
Friends, I have worked together and I have worked alone- believe me, we MUST work together for our own sake. Jesus said something along the lines of, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few- so go work!” No one wants to shovel 4 wheelbarrows of pig poop alone, and I can guarantee you that no one wants to disciple a generation of new believers alone.
So grab a shovel and go.
