Thumb through the Bible….It’s not difficult to find examples of faithful men displaying disobedience. Time and time again, God uses this disobedience to advance His Kingdom–a miracle in itself. God sent Jonah to Nineveh with a message of repentance and second chances…Jonah ran in the opposite direction. I imagine the look on God’s face to resemble that of a parent’s whose toddler just decorated the white couch wth red sharpie. I also imagine that God has a “my child is an honor student” facial expression for those “Abraham moments”. Allow me to summarize and paraphrase to the extreme:
Abraham: Okay, God.
God: Good job. I’m just kidding. You don’t really have to. But thanks for being obedient.
(You may wanna finish that one in your free time: Genesis 22)
I’ve seen my fair share of “Jonah moments”. Shoot–i’ve HAD my fair share of Jonah moments. Maybe that’s why the story i’m about to share with you is so refreshing. This week, I witnessed first-hand an “Abraham moment”. And i’m proud to say that it came from one of our very own Shabach men. Tim…this story is not about you, but you’re in it an awful lot 🙂
Recal from my previous blog that that Tim played guitar and lead worship in church last weekend. Tim’s never played in front of a congregation before. Ever. He’s never had lessons (tho he’s good!). So…God tells Tim….”Tim, I’m gonna need you to play worship music in church on Sunday. In front of everyone”.
He’s nervous. A little freaked out. This is entirely new for him. Nevertheless, he agrees. Okay, God; For You. He chose several songs, transposed them, and practiced. Sunday morning rolls around…and we find that the guitar is missing a string and is entirely out of tune. AWESOME. Still not enough to shake him. At least not to the point where he pulls a Jonah. Instead…he keeps his cool. He figures out how to play on five strings (instead of six), and finds someone who is able to tune the guitar for him at the last minute. That morning, the music was beautiful. We worshiped together, and God was glorified.
As I mentioned before…this story isn’t really about Tim. At all. And I think it’s safe to say on his behalf that he’s okay with that. He knows that his insignificance leaves more room for God’s significance. (John 3.30 He must increase. I must decrease) Like Abraham, Tim was willing to make a sacrifice for God’s Kingdom. When God asked Tim to lay his comfort on the altar, God blessed it. He turned his nervousness and anxiety into worship. God does the same for you and I.
Don’t let the call to the altar scare you. There’s a little bit of Jonah in all of us. If there weren’t, we wouldn’t need Jesus. But because of Jesus…there’s a whole lot of Abraham in us, too.
