Make a Difference
Greta Thunberg is a 15 year old girl from Sweden who recently gave a speech at the UN that went viral.
You may know Greta’s story. I came across it a couple of weeks ago. The video of her speech went viral for several reasons. First of all, here’s a girl that’s only 15 years old giving a speech at the UN. Pretty amazing! Not only that, but Greta has been diagnosed with Aspergers. Inspirational! Not only that, but she’s speaking out about an important issue in our world today, climate change. Convicting! But that’s not why her speech went viral. Her speech went viral because of her passion and because of her passionate action.
You might think that a 15 year old girl from Sweden with Aspergers would not have a chance to make much of a difference in this world, but the truth is she’s making a difference every day.
In her TED Talk on climate change, Greta said this…
“We do need hope. Of course, we do. But the one thing we need more than hope is action. Once we start to act, hope is everywhere.”
– Greta Thunberg
What’s the Problem?
What keeps us from taking action?
What keeps us from making a move when we know something needs to change? What keeps us from doing something when we know what needs to be done?
I wonder if it’s because we’re too comfortable?
Could it be that we’ve created a world where we have all the creature comforts we need, we’ve worked hard to insulate ourselves, and we’re living in this wonderful bubble we’ve designed?
In order to get up and help, to make a move that would make a difference in the life of someone else, means we would have to get up off the couch. It means we would have to get out of our comfort zone. It means we would have to do something that might be difficult for us. And, we would rather not do that.
In THEORY, we believe that if we have the ability we should make a difference in the lives of others. If there is a need and we can meet that need then we should meet that need. But in PRACTICE, we value our own comfort over the needs of others.
Same Problem, Different Time
This is exactly what was happening in Israel in the days when a man by the name of Saul was reigning as king.
Saul was the first person who reigned as king of Israel. The people of Israel had wanted a king because they wanted to be like the other nations. Now they have a king. Like the kings of other nations, Saul is the commander and chief of their army. And the army of Israel at this moment in their history is at war with the Philistines.
The problem is that Saul has all but pushed PAUSE on the war.
1 Samuel 14.2 sets the scene…
“Saul and his 600 men were camped on the outskirts of Gibeah, around the pomegranate tree at Migron.”
King Saul and the army of Israel is camped out under the shade of a pomegranate tree. The war has been hard on Saul’s men. At this point in the story, they have 600 men left. (13.15). To make matters worse, Israel has no blacksmith. So of the 600 military men in King Saul’s army, only 2 men have actual weapons. He is one and his son Jonathan is the other! (13.22).
Talk about being at a disadvantage!
What happens when you find yourself at a disadvantage in life? When things aren’t going your way?
Ever been there? Have you ever felt hopeless? Helpless? Frustrated? Under-resourced?
Saul is down to 600 men to fight an all our war and has only 2 weapons to fight. Saul’s solution: Camp out in the shade under a pomegranate tree.
Wait.
Do nothing.
Fear and the Failure of Nerve
By the way, this happens for so many leaders. Fear leads to a failure of nerve that leads to paralysis. The comfort of the shade lures leaders from making the change that will make a difference for others.
A lot of leaders, even church leaders, do this when they become afraid. They become frozen in fear.
You’ve seen this. You’ve seen this in leaders of organizations, you’ve seen this in the places where you work, and you’ve seen this in church leadership as well. What does fear look like in leadership? Frozen. No movement. No change. No energy. No trajectory. No direction, vision, or call to action.
Churches close their doors every day because they are frozen in fear and indecision.
When leaders become afraid they hide in the shade of “wisdom.” They say things like… “Let’s be patient.” “Better wait and see.” “We want more input.” But in reality, it’s FEAR. Its leadership camped out in the shade of a pomegranate tree. It’s paralysis by analysis!
More than Hope
Saul is afraid. He’s not leading the people of God as a faithful leader empowered by the Spirit of God. He’s leading with a spirit of FEAR.
So we “do need hope. Of course, we do.”
But what if there’s something we need more than hope? And what if what we really needed was the faith to take action? To make the next move? What if we could find the courage to do the next right thing.?
So many times we fall into the same trap Saul found himself in that day. It’s safer in the shade of the pomegranate tree. At least it seems that way. What Saul didn’t realize is that he was never in danger of losing the war with God on his side. There really was no need to be afraid or to hide in the shade of the pomegranate tree. The battle was already won. But that fear that led to paralysis ultimately led to his demise.
If we can find the courage to do something, to make the next move, to get out of the shade of the pomegranate tree and make a difference in the life of someone else, I think what we’ll find as a result of that faithful action is hope.
In the words of Greta who is wise far beyond her years, “Once we start to act, hope is everywhere.”
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