Handing Over the Mantel
Dear Friends,If you were with us on Sunday, and it seems like everyone was – it was the second highest attended Sunday besides Easter – then this won’t come as a surprise to you… I’m on borrowed time, preaching at Canonsburg UP Church…
I kid. But only slightly. More than one person, upon hearing Blake Travers’ message on Sunday, Unconditional Love, that I was going to be out of a job. He did a phenomenal job for a 17 year old High School student, preaching for the very first time. I was excited to hear him preach and sure he’d do well, but even I was surprised and impressed. More than that though, I was overjoyed. That young man was… only a kindergartener when I arrived a dozen years ago. And to see him now… all grown up, sharing the love of God to our entire congregation and beyond – wow.
Honestly, we’re all, if we’re doing it right, training up the people that will take our jobs one day. It’s the way it should be. It’s the way God intended. Elijah the prophet went out and found Elisha, who was farming, and invited him to learn the job and eventually take his mantel. Jesus chose twelve (because no single person could do the work of Jesus alone) and after three years together, breathed the Holy Spirit on them and left them to carry on the mission. And for two thousand years, the church has been baptizing, mentoring, confirming, laying hands and sending out the next generations to carry on the work of Jesus in our own communities and beyond.
When we fail to do that, when we fail to recognize the gifts and talents in others, nurture them and provide space for them to grow… that’s when a given church, in a given community, starts to become unhealthy… and eventually dies.
For 250 years, Canonsburg United Presbyterian Church has chosen a different path. We’ve chosen to teach, mentor, empower and send out followers of Jesus to do that work. Some of them have been ordained to the pastorate as Teaching Elders or Ministers of Word and Sacrament and traveled far afield. Some of them have been ordained as Deacons and Elders and stayed to lead and guide this community. Some of them, while they didn’t grow up here, they were nurtured here while they served internships, on staff, or as assistant or associate pastors. And we as a community, and we as a church writ large, have been the beneficiaries of this.
Last night I was at the Washington Presbytery meeting, and I gave a brief update on Pine Springs Camp – whose mission it is to provide vital encounters with Jesus Christ. We often think of that only in terms of being a camper. But I explained it’s equally true and important for those who lead – staff or volunteers. Because as we lead others, we encounter Christ in a unique way. As we use our gifts, we encounter Jesus. Pine Springs Camp is a place where young and old (another 17 year old I know is heading up there for the second half of the summer to serve as a counselor) are provided room to encounter Christ by serving. It’s vital to their ongoing growth – hand them the keys, in a safe space, mentored by other seasoned Jesus-followers – and watch what God does with them!
That’s Canonsburg UP too.
And not just Blake, not just the person preaching. We had a dozen other children and students get up and share their musical talents, their voices, their hands and feet and faces and not only are we blessed and encouraged – so are they! And their understanding of the church and God is dramatically affected by their leadership, which is much more than just passive participation. They see that they belong. And so they stay. And they grow. And we grow together. And that’s our mission. I’m glad to keep providing that place and space… because one day I really will be handing over the keys and the mantel of leadership, to someone who’s not going to look or act or sound like me, who’s going to do things differently, but by God’s grace, they’re going to be following Jesus, just like I’ve tried to do. And for that, I give great thanks!
Welcoming You to Grow in Jesus too,
Pastor Don