Fruitlessness

It is sad that among many Christians there is a desire to always appear successful.  We don't like admitting to failure.  A Minister attending a Ministers' Fraternal in a large town was perplexed as in turn each one present spoke of the wonderful things that were happening in their churches.  He became concerned that something about the meeting inhibited people talking about problems they were confronting.  As an older man himself he knew that church leadership and ministry often produces tears.  So when his turn cam he deliberately only spoke about a current difficult situation in his church.  He hoped that his contribution would release other Ministers to speak more honestly.  He waited expectantly for the next man.  His opening word were "I'm glad I haven't got any problems in my church like that!"  Not one other among the 20 to 30 Ministers there were prepared to admit to problems or weaknesses.  Why can't we be more honest?

My fruitlessness story this week is about my attempt to upgrade my laptop from Windows 7 to Windows 10.  I have an early version of Windows 8 on my Surface Tablet and knew that W10 would be a better experience.  I goit ready by transferring data files to an external hard drive to maximise space.  I checked that my computer and system passed the test for the upgrade and was delighted to see the update downloading and installing automatically late one evening.  But at the critical moment it failed to load.

The next day I ran some checks and repeated the download and installation successfully.  But once more it failed on startup.  A phone call to Microsoft resulted in a very nice lady in their technical department spending a couple of hours working on my laptop remotely but every time she loaded W10 it failed at startup.  She kindly booked me a session with a senior technician and this Saturday morning he rang and we made a confident start.  During the following five hours, during which time a second senior technician joined the exercise, the outcome was fruitless.

So I wasted about a day and a half with these fruitless attempts.  I wonder how the men felt who had tried so many things to get it to work.  After all they are experts and the problem is with my laptop and not their skills.

The problem was not with the men who had gone fishing.  They spent time and effort fruitlessly despite drawing on their knowledge and experience.  They were experts but after fruitless hours had to admit defeat.  Fortunately there was another expert on hand who understood the problem and had a workable solution.  I'm sure that you know the two occasions that are mentioned in the gospels, (Luke 5: 4-7;  John 21: 1-8)

How are you feeling about your service for the Master right now.  If it proving fruitful then give thanks to God.  On the other hand if you are going through a frustrating and difficult time, don't despair. Acknowledging our failure and listening to God's response may well change the situation.  His presence and his wisdom changed the situation for the fishermen.  However, trust in God is not the same as triumphalism, which is usually a bad thing.  Sometimes, it is part of God's plan that we live with our failure so that our faith and commitment are tested.  Many a wonderful servant of God has felt that they laboured for nothing.  Remember that success is getting up one more time thaan you fall down.

Fruitfulness in ministry of any kind is not down to our ability or goodness.  When things are not going right in our ministry then trying harder is not usually as effective as trusting more.
 

Current items for praise & prayer
Thank you for your prayers for the Sunday ministry at HMP Gartree and Yelvertoft.  There was quit blessing in both locations.  Thank you also for your prayers for Holiday at Home (10-14 August) in Market Harborough.  There was a good attendance each day and a real sense of the joy and blessing of God.  It was particularly encouraging to see how both the team and our guests worked together for the blessing of others.  We lose our leader, Rev Brian Kennard, next year but the team is in good heart and keen to keep going.  Brian and his wife are former associate evangelists from Mission fro Christ days.

Last Tuesday was my last day as Chair of the Churches Rural Group (a Coordinating Group of Churches Together in England).  While I shall continue to be part of this Group I was happy to pass responsibility on to fresh shoulders.

On Thursday I met with others responsible for Area Mission workers fro the East Midlands Area of the Congregational Federation.  After much prayer, consultation and reflection we have come up with a plan that has excited us as we seek to support some 30 churches in their mission.

This Sunday I share in a Joint Open Air Service in the village of Crick, Northants.
Monday 24 I share in a telephone conference responding to various requests for financial support for mission within the Congregational Federation.
Tuesday 25 there is more planning - this time with the Yelvertoft group from various churches as we plan the next two term's school assemblies.  From there I go to HMP Gartree for my regular activities.
On Wednesday 26 we hold our summer holiday Messy Church Event in Yelvertoft.  Please pray for a good attendance by children plus parents.   Please pray for the team of which I am a part.

I have been doing some important writing recently and there is more to be done.    I am also busy in several aspects of ministry so although there are no meetings for the rest of the week I expect to be very busy.

CHRISTIAN SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES
I am looking for some additional members for the Webinar Team, especially people with reasonable confidence using a computer who would help monitoring questions raised by those who attend the webinars.  Email me to find out more.

Sunrise Ministries is looking for people who understand rural life, love the Lord and have ability in children's work.  At the moment we have sufficient funds to offer a part time post. This position involves work as an enabler with rural churches to help build appropriate programmes of mission and ministry to and with children.  Email me for more information about this post.

Thank you for your prayers and practical support.  Your fellowship means so much to us.

Yours sincerely in Christ,

Barry