Thought of the Day !!

Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.
1 Corinthians 12:12-14 (NIV)

I've been listening a lot to a Casting Crowns song called "If We Are the Body". The chorus goes like this:

If we are the body,
Why aren't his arms reaching?
Why aren't his hands healing?
Why aren't his words teaching?

And if we are the body,
Why aren't his feet going?
Why is his love not showing,
them there is a way?

One of the answers to these questions, I believe, is that we all think someone else will do it. In preparing for my sermon last week I ran across an illustration that didn't make it into the sermon, but has a very interesting point to it. It goes like this:

A church put this in their bulletins on week. “We are all saddened to learn of the death of one of our church’s most valuable members…Someone Else. Their passing has created a vacancy that will be difficult to fill. Someone Else has been with us for many years, and for every one of those years, did far more than a normal person’s share of the work. Whenever leadership was mentioned, this wonderful person was looked to for inspiration as well as results. “Someone Else can work with that group.” Whenever there was a job to do, a class to teach, or a meeting to attend, one name was on everyone’s list…Someone Else. “Let Someone Else do it” was a common refrain heard throughout the church. It was common knowledge that Someone Else was among the largest givers in the church. Whenever there was a financial need, everyone just assumed that Someone Else would make up the difference. Someone Else was a wonderful person, sometimes appearing superhuman, but a person can only do so much. If the truth were known, everyone expected too much of Someone Else. Now Someone Else is gone, and we wonder what we’re going to do. Someone Else left a wonderful example to follow, but who will follow it? Who will do all of the things that Someone Else did? Remember, we can’t depend on Someone Else!

Are you waiting for Someone Else to accept the call that God has given you? Are you waiting on Someone Else to go and share God's love with someone who's hurting? Are you waiting on Someone Else to fund a special project that is needed in the church or the community?

Or will you become the "Someone Else" and lead others to do the same?

In the love of Christ,
greg