As far as I can remember, I have always LOVED the spotlight. If there was a stage, I was on it. If there was a literal spotlight, I wanted to be in it. If I wasn’t singing, I was acting, and as I grew older and got into ministry, I started teaching children all the way to college-age students. I thrived in the spotlight, but over the last 6-7 years I haven’t stepped a foot onto a stage. My head got in the way of my heart, and the person that once stood in the spotlight, center stage, at The Whiting and sang for thousands, no longer has the desire to be on any stage anywhere. Now I joyfully serve in the behind-the-scenes ministries, doing the work to make things run—and I love it, and excel in it.
As I got older, I began to ask “what is the motivation” or “what is the meaning behind” the desire for the spotlight in myself and other people. In myself, I learned I liked the attention and the ego boost of the applause and compliments, and realized that I took all the credit instead of giving it to God—I valued the gift more than the Giver. In other people, let’s look at pastors, for example—what is their motivation for their ministry? Is it for the desire to preach the Gospel, for lives to be changed by learning how to live and love like Jesus, and to raise up a generation of strong believers who live by the Word of God? Or is it power? Prestige, perhaps even money in some circumstances? In today’s scripture reading, Paul is in chains still, and of course he longs to preach the Gospel, yet he knows that there are people out in the world preaching out of wrong motives, and what is his response, well, this:
“But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.” (Philippians 1:18a)
We may never know the true desires and motivations of someone’s heart, but God does, and he will handle them accordingly. However, the point here, is Paul’s response, his joy never came from getting the spotlight to preach, nor the power and prestige of the attention and reputation boost he could achieve…. his joy came from Christ being preached—that’s it!
Now, it PAINS me to give a little shout out to Pastor John right now, because he just dethroned me in our staff March Madness bracket, and I may or may not still be a little bitter, HOWEVER, I have gotten to know him outside of Sunday morning. The most encouraging and truly humble thing about him, he isn’t motivated by power, status, and wealth…. he is motivated to preach the Word, to honor the Word, and to live solely by the Word. It doesn’t matter if it is him preaching, or Pastor Matt, or Pastor Kyle, or any of our guys on staff—he rejoices in that fact that at Emmanuel, Christ is preached. That is such an amazing thing!
Listen, I may never get on stage to sing, ever again, even at Emmanuel, but you know what? I am joyful that God has given Emmanuel many talented people to get up on stage to help lead Emmanuel in Worship every Sunday. I am joyful that Pastor John, desires to preach the Living Word of God every Sunday, and when he can’t he gives the spotlight to other faithful preaches to do the same! What a blessing, and I hope that you feel blessed by that too!
As I got older, I began to ask “what is the motivation” or “what is the meaning behind” the desire for the spotlight in myself and other people. In myself, I learned I liked the attention and the ego boost of the applause and compliments, and realized that I took all the credit instead of giving it to God—I valued the gift more than the Giver. In other people, let’s look at pastors, for example—what is their motivation for their ministry? Is it for the desire to preach the Gospel, for lives to be changed by learning how to live and love like Jesus, and to raise up a generation of strong believers who live by the Word of God? Or is it power? Prestige, perhaps even money in some circumstances? In today’s scripture reading, Paul is in chains still, and of course he longs to preach the Gospel, yet he knows that there are people out in the world preaching out of wrong motives, and what is his response, well, this:
“But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.” (Philippians 1:18a)
We may never know the true desires and motivations of someone’s heart, but God does, and he will handle them accordingly. However, the point here, is Paul’s response, his joy never came from getting the spotlight to preach, nor the power and prestige of the attention and reputation boost he could achieve…. his joy came from Christ being preached—that’s it!
Now, it PAINS me to give a little shout out to Pastor John right now, because he just dethroned me in our staff March Madness bracket, and I may or may not still be a little bitter, HOWEVER, I have gotten to know him outside of Sunday morning. The most encouraging and truly humble thing about him, he isn’t motivated by power, status, and wealth…. he is motivated to preach the Word, to honor the Word, and to live solely by the Word. It doesn’t matter if it is him preaching, or Pastor Matt, or Pastor Kyle, or any of our guys on staff—he rejoices in that fact that at Emmanuel, Christ is preached. That is such an amazing thing!
Listen, I may never get on stage to sing, ever again, even at Emmanuel, but you know what? I am joyful that God has given Emmanuel many talented people to get up on stage to help lead Emmanuel in Worship every Sunday. I am joyful that Pastor John, desires to preach the Living Word of God every Sunday, and when he can’t he gives the spotlight to other faithful preaches to do the same! What a blessing, and I hope that you feel blessed by that too!