Several years ago, my children convinced me that starting a Facebook account would be a good idea. They successfully argued that I could keep in touch with college classmates from the 1980s, become reacquainted with church members I pastored in the 1980s and 1990s, maintain contact with university students I had taught from the late 1990s onward, and expand my worldwide circle of friends I was gaining as a result of my current job responsibilities.
Growing numbers, growing influence
For the first year and a half, my list of Facebook friends grew rapidly—with people ranging from childhood friends to those I was meeting via my travels. I quickly discovered that sending personal emails and/or chatting with past church members or students proved to be an extension of my ministry from years earlier. Perhaps my greatest joy gained through Facebook has been seeing how many of my students have matured through their joys and struggles. Some of them have married and had children and established their own ministries or other careers—experiencing the ups and downs that come with it all.
Something is missing
My wife also has a Facebook account. She has had hers longer than I have had mine, but she does not have as many friends as I do. As is the case with me, her list of friends dates from her childhood years to the present.
But there is one significant difference between her list of friends and my list. Because she attended public schools from her elementary years through her advanced degree studies and has always worked in nonchurch settings, her acquaintances are far more philosophically and religiously diverse than mine. Mine is, sad to say, largely (though not exclusively) Adventist.
My list of Facebook contacts forces me to look into the proverbial mirror and honestly assess my life’s journey. I understand that I count those more than 800 people as friends because of the paths I have traveled. But why have I spent so much time traveling paths that are occupied largely by other Seventh-day Adventists? Have I created a life for myself where I “touch no unclean thing” (see 2 Cor. 6:17) so that I can be accepted by God? Most important, have I spent so much time ministering to those who are like me that I don’t know how to relate to those that I possibly perceive are not like me?
A vow for 2014
Each year as the calendar marches from December to January, I reminisce both upon lessons learned during the year and what I wish to accomplish in the upcoming year. And I have given much thought to the role I need to actively play in sharing Christ with others. I have often heard the refrain that “shepherds don’t produce sheep; sheep produce sheep”—and I’ve most often heard that from those who find it more palatable to engage in public pursuits rather than in personal, one-on-one contact. It is as if the truth escapes our thinking that we as ministers are both shepherds and sheep.
So what do I need to do in 2014? How can I impact my neighbors (many of whom have never been inside a church building except for a wedding or funeral) to whom I speak about a variety of subjects, but they only know that I work for some denominational organization? I pray for opportunities to benefit them, but do I recognize those open doors when they present themselves? And what about the person in the grocery line, or the barber who cuts my son’s hair? What kinds of God-given opportunities am I passing by?
How is your life journey? Are you so consumed with sermon preparation, church administration, and a myriad of other responsibilities (some of which could be addressed by others) that you’ve lost touch with those who see life through different philosophical lenses? I find myself constantly drawn to the example of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, who engaged in a comprehensive ministry for others (see Matt. 9:36)—not merely leaving the work of personally touching distressed souls to those He was mentoring.
I promise God and myself that in 2014, I will not leave the work of personal evangelism solely to church members to fulfill. After all, I am a sheep as well as are they. I am convinced that, as a gospel minister, I have to do more than train and equip the flock. I have to genuinely model what I teach, just as Jesus did in reaching out to Nicodemus (John 3:1–21).
And in doing so, my own walk with Jesus will be enhanced.
