The Fruit of Our Labor

By no means do I consider myself to be a cityslicker. The city that I grew up wasn't much of a city. With a whopping 6 traffic lights, "fine" eateries consisting of the likes of Dairy Queen and a greasy spoon called Grothe's Restaurant, and 3 grocery stores, West Columbia, Texas wasn't much to brag about. Still, it was home. Neither do I consider myself a country bumpkin. We did have a few chickens in a fenced-in area for a while when I was young. We did raise tomatoes, cucumbers, okra, and squash each summer in our little garden in our back yard. I guess that I'm a fine mixture of both ... a misplaced wanna' be big city boy with a touch of country flavor mixed in for good measure.

I do remember one thing from our gardening days. You never planted the seed and expected a harvest the next day, or the day after that, or the next week. You knew that there was a process that the seed had to go through. We confidently knew that the harvest would come in due time.

This weekend, I had the greatest experience. I had some dear friends in to minister for Trinity's children. In between services Sunday, I took my friends over to visit with our senior pastor. Along the way to his study, teenager after teenager would stop me, give me a big hug and talk to me for a minute or two. I would then introduce the teenagers to my friends and tell how Vickie and I had been their children's pastor for their entire life. It was so thrilling to be able to then state that the teen was now a master teacher in our 2-year-old nursery class, another one of "my" teens was now the praise and worship leader for our Saturday night children's church, another one of "my" teens was now working in the media ministry running a video camera each weekend.

Sadly, few children's ministry leaders get to enjoy that experience. They stay in one ministry or church for a few months or years and then move on to "greener" pastures. They haven't learned from the wise farmer how to enjoy the benefits of their labor. For over 18 years, Vickie and I have planted seed. It was great this weekend to walk through the hallways and see our labors showcased throughout the church! Here's to longevity ....