Rewind. On April 3, 1973 Martin Cooper, inventor of the cell phone, placed the first public cell phone call using Motorola's DynaTac. The DynaTac had but one function; it was just a phone, and went on sale to the public in 1983 for $3,500. I watched a recent interview with Martin as he cascaded through a cell phone trade convention. The now 81 year old inventor was fascinated by the plethora of technology in today's phones; cameras, video, browsers, gps, apps galore, and messaging. But he seemed troubled and vocal about the fact that none of our phones do any one thing particularly well. Some, in fact, are actually horrible "phones". Interesting.
Rewind further. Unlike today's cell phones, Jesus did not come to be all things to all people. He came to call his own. He openly rejected the Pharisees and those who oppressed the poor and broken calling them a "brood of vipers" in Matthew 23. Jesus is, however, all things to His people. He is all we need.
Nor did Jesus come to do everything for everyone. He came as a teacher, often called Rabbi. He came to establish His authority and a pathway home for those who seek Him. He came to die for Life. Jesus did a few things and He accomplished them with simplistic excellence. But, Jesus can do everything for those that call Him "Savior."
Christ came. He lived. He died. He defeated death and in between the example He left was to focus on doing a few things well.
Today it seems we as individuals and as a Church often try to do everything, be everything, and fail miserable at times at accomplishing anything. Being back in Church now for 6 years I went through extremes of first not feeling worthy to do anything. Then being ecstatic to be asked to do "something" and eventually ended up being overwhelmed by "everything". Lately I came to realize I can do a few things well and chose to follow that narrower, tighter path, if you will.
Romans 12:4-8 confirmed the choices I made earlier this year and has encouraged me to seek out what I've been given to "do well" through His grace.
"For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness." Romans 12:4-8
Individually we should seek out the true abilities of our hearts and hands. And as a Church we should identify how we are best suited, situated, and gifted to deliver His message whether that is over the fence, or over-seas. While Nike popularized "Just Do It", I would have to refine and focus that to "Just Do It Well."
Part 2 Follw up post is here: "Cell Phones - Church - The Promise"
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