meditatio at the water's edge

Well, I have finally come to grips with some things I've been denying. I am tired of trying to interest the uninterested (thanks for that phrase go to Todd Hunter and probably others). I am undertaking a new strategy in what I do. I am going to focus on building a "coalition of the willing." No, I'm not going to war with Iraq. I am just feeling like I don't have enough time to spread myself thin over people who really don't share the same agenda. It's not that I am writing people off in an angry way. It's more a matter of stewardship and focus.

As I write this I sense that this has what I have seen as necessary for a long time and am finally resolving myself to it. This, I think, is basically how Jesus operated (just remember the thinning out that Jesus' teaching did [John 6]). Jesus didn't really waste too much time with the uninterested. He announced the kingdom, called people to follow him in his way, and focused in on a smaller number of people to be his apprentices. As my friend Daryl pointed out today, Jesus even told some people they were not to follow him around, but to go back to their homes to be accepted back into their communities.

So what has made me feel like I need to keep trying to interest people (I'm talking "church people" here, yo) who really don't care a whole lot about what I'm saying? Maybe it has something to do with thinking I need a majority of people to agree with me. Maybe it is being unrealistic about what I can really accomplish and how people really learn. Maybe it is because I feel I have to justify my financial compensation by pleasing those who provide it (which may be a completely inappropriate assumption). Is this ringing any bells, or am I the only one?

So here is my plan. I am giving it the code name "Operation Orange Seed." (Why? Because orange seeds are small and I like oranges and orange trees don't grow too big, but they produce good, sweet, healthy, vitamin C-packed fruit.) I will build a coalition of the willing among the people around me (here and at 'the other place'). I will not be discouraged by people who don't join my coalition (I will still love those Frenchies even though they don't join me--and even if they send me pretzels). I will learn from and teach those who are interested and want to share in this journey of apprenticeship. I will not be concerned with how many people are with me (orange seeds are small, after all). I will be concerned with seeking to nurture, with God's action among us, the small seed into a flourishing citrus beauty that provides healthy fruit and shade to all who come near.

Eventually, who knows? Maybe the coalition of the willing will expand. Maybe the fruit will fall to the ground and die so that new seeds can develop into trees that bear good fruit. It's just going to take a while. Maybe a lifetime. Maybe three years.

Well, there goes our old numerical growth models. Maybe that's a good thing; they weren't working too well anyway.