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Isaiah 43: 1-4; Matthew 25: 14-30 What are you called to do? Who are you called to be?
Peter 'Scotty' Strahan thought he knew the answer to those questions. Scotty was a born singer. He pictured himself doing concerts and entertaining huge crowds. As a boy, he won in talent contests in England. Then he came to America in 1949, singing all the way. He sang with big bands, in nightclubs, in bars. People loved his uplifting tunes and positive expressions. But it didn't last. In the 1960s rock era, such upbeat singing went out of style. Scotty's club dates dried up, and he had to find another way to make a living. He took a job delivering medical supplies.
On a February day in 1970, he delivered to a convalescent home in Glendale, California. As he walked in, he was immediately moved by the listlessness of the people sitting in the lobby. On a sudden impulse, he put down the oxygen tank he was carrying, and started to sing. He walked up and down the row of people singing, snapping his fingers, dancing and crooning. The staff immediately noticed the spark in the residents' eyes, and asked Scotty to come back. When he did, bringing his whole show with him, Scotty found himself singing, acting, impersonating, and dancing in front of increasingly enthusiastic audiences. Word spread, and he was invited to sing at facilities across Northern California. His act is known as 'Cheery Pete,' and if you hear him talk now, he has found his true vocation in life. He has always loved to sing, but now it is more rewarding than ever.
It's vocation that I want to talk about today - finding your true calling in life. Scotty knew he had a gift, but never found the fullness of his calling until he wandered into a nursing home. And then, something powerful happened. When someone has a gift, and finds the place to give it, it is truly a powerful thing.
Early in my ministry, I was deeply influenced by a pastor who exhibited this power.
Early in his life, he was given a passion for Africa, and he was certain that he was called to be a missionary. He prepared for it all through his early life. Then disaster struck. The Methodist Missionary Board turned down his application; he would never go to Africa as a missionary. He was crushed, but he trusted that God would use his gifts and his passions. So, he entered the track to get into the parish ministry.
Over the course of time, not only did he become an outstanding preacher and pastor, he became the inspiration for a whole generation of young pastors, including myself. Not only that - he carried on a long-distance ministry for Africa - organizing mission trips, raising funds for African churches, and for other African needs. There can be little doubt that this man found the joy of his life. But it wasn't what he had pictured. Usually it isn't. Usually, God takes it someplace you would never expect. This pastor found his gift, his passion, and his opportunity - and it was a powerful combination. That combination is one of the most powerful things God ever made.
It's this combination we are going to be talking about these next few Sundays, as we focus on stewardship for the month of October. Stewardship is that odd church-y word we use to talk about the fact that we are partners with God in taking care of our gifts. You may not see yourself as God's partner, but that's exactly what you are. You have been given time, talents, possessions, compassion, hope - the list of gifts you have could go on and on. And the reason for these gifts is clear in the Bible. We are God's partners. He needs us to get the job done.
It's kind of like the sign that appeared on a little country church. It said, "This church was built by God." And then a little sign under it said, "Plumbing installed by Johnson and Sons." That's kind of like what stewardship is about. God made the world; God is the force behind the good things that happen in this world; God can do anything. But God still needs plumbers, and God still needs singers in nursing homes, and God still needs pastors who raise funds for Africa. And God still needs you and me to find our gift and our passion and our opportunity.
Our New Testament lesson is about that partnership. Jesus tells a story - a man goes on a trip. He entrusts his possessions to his servants - each according to his abilities. The one with five talents might justly feel like the star - he was the one who was given the most resources. Yet his attitude was not one of bragging - it was one of partnership. He used what he had been given, and returned great gains to his master.
But it's the second servant who deserves special notice. He wasn't the star. He was entrusted with two talents - not five like the other servant. He might have sat around and moped about it. Why does the other guy get five talents, and I only get two? Maybe he wanted to sing for great crowds, and then found he was called instead to entertain old folks in the nursing home. Anyway, he took on the partnership, too, and brought back a gain for his master. That's stewardship. And, as powerful as it is to see the servants who seized the partnership and expanded their gifts, it is just as tragic to see the missed opportunity of the servant who buried his gift, and thus lost his opportunity to be part of what the master was doing. This is the danger - that we might lose the greatest opportunity in our lives - the opportunity to do something amazing with our God-given gifts.
A couple years back, a pastor from California, Rick Warren, hit the best-seller list with his book entitled The Purpose Driven Life. This turned out to be an idea that struck a deep chord with thousands and thousands of people - that our lives were intended to have purpose - to have meaning. The amazing success of Warren's book shows that clearly people are hungry to discover what that purpose may be - and to soak up the idea that every one of us can be a part of something great. Jesus called that being part of the kingdom of God - the greatest project that has ever been begun on this earth.
It is what the Old Testament prophet Isaiah said centuries ago: "Now thus says the Lord, he who created you...he who formed you...Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine." Think of it. The one who created you calls you by name, redeems you by the gift of Jesus Christ on the cross, and then ordains you to do something amazing in this life. And when you find that purpose - that God-ordained combination of your gift, your passion, and your opportunity - then unbelievable power will be unleashed in your life. There is a situation in this life that only you can address for God. There is an opportunity that only you will have. There are people who need what God has given you. And God calls you to be ready to respond. There is no more powerful force in your life than that.
Where will you find it? It may be in what makes you angry. You might say, "Why doesn't God do something about that?" And God's answer may be, "I did. I called you." It may be in what makes you cry. You might say, "God, who can touch such sorrow as this?" And God may be saying, "I call you to reach out." It may be in what makes you frightened. You might say, "God, that takes me too far out of my comfort zone." And God responds, "But that's where the power is. That's where the purpose is. That's where I am. No one ever realized the power of their potential by staying comfortable. You are called to something greater than that." Maybe it's what you do to pay your bills; maybe it's what you do in your spare time. It may be the last thing you pictured yourself doing. But God is saying, "This is where I need you. I call you by name."
Our stewardship theme this year is "Every Member a Minister." And we will be challenging each one of us to find the ways that we can be in partnership with God in the life of this church. We're going to share with you how you might offer your presence, your prayers, your gifts, and your service to God. And we're going to send you some material that invites you to pray over these things. Finally, at the end of the month, we're going to fill the back windows of this church with ministers, as a way of visualizing what this wonderful church really is - a God-blessed gathering of people who have hard the call of Christ in their lives, and who have stepped forward to be part of the world's greatest enterprise - the kingdom of God. There is no greater power on earth, and no greater possibility in your life.
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Sermons 