Friday, December 21, 2001

REWARDS

"Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet's reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple--truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward." Matthew 10:40-42

In the letter to the Galatians, we find a list of the fruit of the Spirit: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." When I was a brand-new Christian, I kept searching myself for signs that these "fruits" were in fact growing in me. I took seriously and literally the need to be bearing fruit so I would be found worthy of calling myself a disciple of Christ. But I didn't see much of any of these things in me.

I prayed long and hard, sometimes, that I might be given these gifts. I thought of them as rewards for the followers of Jesus. If you were "doing it right," these gifts would appear, miraculously and all at once. And most of the Christians I associated with at that time agreed with me. Those who follow Jesus are rewarded in this way.

Well, I finally got fed up. I was no more self-controlled than I was in what I considered to be my "pre-Christian state." I tried to reform myself, only to fail again and again. I thought I had joy, and I could find peace every once in awhile, but I was beginning to wonder if I'd actually been converted at all. Shouldn't every Christian show these gifts?

So I made a mistake. I went to talk to God about all this, and I said, "For example, Lord, I'm still very impatient. It would be nice if you'd help me be more patient. Especially with my husband." Why do I say I made a mistake? Because I had fallen right into God's hands. I had said, "I need to be changed." And I inserted no 'ifs, ands or buts' into the request.

I had never read the passage in Hebrews (12:11-14) that says "Now, discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed. Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord."

I soon found myself behind every slow-moving vehicle in the county. Farm wagons, dump trucks, and little old ladies with their hands gripping the steering wheel in panic, all drove in front of me. Not just a few times, either God was making a point here, you see but seemingly every time I had someplace to go in a big hurry. Or even when I wasn't really in a hurry, but with a purpose in mind, impatient to get on with my itinerary.

Later, I preached on this and made a joke of it. But I had learned something serious. The fruit of the spirit is not like Newton's apple. It doesn't just drop on your head. It drops repeatedly, relentlessly, until the lesson is learned. But the discipline becomes its own reward when someone says, "I don't know where you get the patience ." And I reply, "Be careful what you ask for."

Sandra Herrmann

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