Plow the Road

In November of 2000 I attended the National Youth Workers Convention in Atlanta.  This was my first convention as Youth Pastor of the Union Church of Hinsdale, and I accompanied by David Knecht.  David, you may recall, was the head of the search committee that brought me to UC.  He was a man in his forties who had built and sold a computer company, and now had lots of time on his hands.  He was giving that time to serve God, and especially the youth of UC.  I liked David a lot and was glad he was going to his first NYWC.  Funny story- we were to stay at a Marriott in Atlanta for the convention, and when the former CEO of Marriott, who was a member at UC, found out he wanted to upgrade us to a luxury suite.  I said no thanks, explaining to him that youth workers staying in a luxury suite would be the targets of many jokes and quite possibly an investigation...

As David and I flew to Atlanta, settled in to our meager accommodations (HA!) and begin to explore the NYWC, a question that had been nagging me through my first 8 months at UC came to the forefront of my mind.  Why had David not applied for the job I now had? He knew the people and culture of UC that so frustrated me; he was one of them.  He clearly loved Jesus, students and student ministry.  At the convention he was like a kid in a toy store; everything amazed him!  I recognized it in him because it had been true for me for so many years.  He soaked up everything.  I introduced him to many of the legends of youth ministry, and he was a little starstruck.  He loved the seminars, the speakers, the music- everything!  And to complete his experience, I made sure he got his first ever Chick-fil-A sandwich.  David. like so many before him, was now addicted to the NYWC.

At some point during that week I had a chat with an old friend, who had known me a long time and who had been in ministry a long time.  I shared with him some of my frustrations, and specifically my thoughts about David being the right person for the job I currently had.  As we talked, Todd reminded me that 15 years earlier I had taken a job with the New England Yearly Meeting of Friends.  After a short time at that ministry I had similar feelings about Chris Jorgensen who had volunteered years with the youth there, only to see me get the job she wanted.  I realized when I left NEYM that God's purpose for me there had been to prepare things for Chris.  I was there 9 months, and then she got the job and served them brilliantly for many years.  Like an offensive lineman in football, sometimes our ministry is just to plow the road for someone else.  John the Baptist did it for Jesus.  I had done it for Chris.  And now, my friend was saying, maybe I was at UC to get everything set up and ready for David to succeed.  It was, in many ways, a hard pill to swallow.  I had moved my family thousands of miles so I could be a "star."  I had gone to UC to be a "savior," not a set-up man.  But those were my reasons.  Perhaps God had a different design in mind. 

We left Atlanta to fly back to Chicago for Thanksgiving, and my prayers had now changed. I just wanted to be used.  No more dreams of glory.  If I was there to plant the tree instead of harvest the fruit, so be it- I just wanted to serve God.  I was going to work just as hard as I had been, but now I had a new direction.  If I was indeed there to plow the road, then I was going to keep cutting a wide path for Jesus. 

Jesus- the only hope for me is you...and You alone!