Skip to main content

Life in Greencastle - Passing on the Faith

Like most of you I receive a free copy of the Banner Graphic on Mondays. Most of the time I flip through the first section – noting who’s doing what for better or for worse – and then move on. But, this past Monday I happened to read into the second section, and it was there I discovered a story worth holding onto.

Did you see the article? It was a quick blurb titled “Purdue-trained guard unit helps Afghan farmers.” The essence of the article is that there is a group from the Indiana National Guard that has been specifically trained to help the Afghani people relearn and re-cultivate successful farms.

Here is the line that jumped out to me:

"A lot of generational knowledge that gets passed down from father to son on different ways and successful ways to do agriculture has really been severed,’ said Maj. Shawn Gardner, the 1-19th Agribusiness Development Team's operations officer.”

Ever since the Russians invaded Afghanistan in the late 1970’s Afghanistan has been torn apart by war and wrecked by devastating leadership, including the detrimental presence of the Taliban. The “ways” that led to life and prosperity have been replaced by the “ways” of death and destruction and disruption. And within this disruption, there is the erosion of mentoring, what Maj. Gardner calls “generational knowledge” – passing down the secrets of the trade from “father to son.”

So, why did this strike me? Why should I (or you) care about a new farming initiative in Afghanistan? Well, to put it simply: because this story is a reminder to pass on our Christian faith … because we are called to hand on our faith to the next generation (Deut. 6:4-7).

Our faith is essentially a “generational” faith. Someone has said appropriately that Christianity only has the shelf-life of one generation, and what they meant by this is that unless the faith is passed on from mother to daughter, from father to son, or even from grandparent to child, Christianity will not persist. And, yet, generation after generation our faith has been passed on.

Which begs the question, “Who passed on the faith to you?”

In the New Testament, we see an incredible, vibrant example of passing on of the faith. It’s the story of Paul the Apostle and Timothy his disciple. We have a lot of Paul’s and Timothy’s relationship recorded for us throughout Paul’s letters, but it is in the second letter Paul wrote specifically to Timothy that we see a clear desire to pass on the faith:

“You then,” Paul says to Timothy, “my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus; and what you have heard from me through many witnesses entrust to faithful people who will be able to teach others as well.” (2 Tim. 2: 1,2)

In essence, Paul says: “Pass it on. Keep speaking about and teaching people what I have taught you, Timothy.”

Let me give you another example. My wife (along with Megan McKee and Catharine Simmerman) is currently teaching swim lessons to children at Greencastle High School. Anna told me recently that they were teaching each of the main strokes: freestyle, breaststroke, etc. One day at a time, they were training these kids how to use their bodies to swim. And here’s the key: My wife and Megan and Catharine are teaching children what their own mentors taught them while they were young. They are passing on “generational knowledge.”

So, let me ask you again: “Who passed on the Christian faith to you?”

What did they teach you? Did they teach you well?

And who are you mentoring? Are you seeking to pass on the faith to anyone else so they might grow in the knowledge and love of Jesus Christ?

You know, it takes a serious, determined, disciplined effort for a group of Indiana farmers to pack up their lives and move thousands of miles away so they might pass on basic farming skills and knowledge. But, it is also an incredibly loving and charitable thing to do. What Maj. Gardner and the 1-19th Agribusiness Development Team are passing on is new life and new hope. That is their mission.

And, we – as disciples of Jesus Christ - have the same mission in our own way: to cultivate life and hope in and through Jesus. Sure, God may not call us thousands of miles away from Greencastle, but God still invites us to go to those whose lives have been disrupted and eroded. We are sent – commissioned – to go out and pass on what we are learning from Jesus to others (Mt. 28:18-20, especially verse 20).

Who passed on the faith to you? Did they teach you well? Have you been given a faith that can sustain you and even give you abundant life?

Are you growing as a disciple?

These questions are always there for us. And so is the opportunity: to go to other people and to help them tap into the living root of Jesse, the True Vine, Jesus Christ.

May we grow in faithfulness to Jesus Christ and in our service to the needy.

Wes

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Acts 2:42-47 - Questions for Reflection & Study

This past Sunday, we took a look at Luke's first summary passage in the story of Acts:  chapter 2, verses 42-47.  Here, Luke is presenting a billboard of what the Church looks like at its best.  He is trying to convince Theophilus that Christianity is worth his attention.  The early Church captures what all of us are looking for, whether we know it or not.  This is a close community that truly cares for one another, where everyone truly is seen as a brother and sister, and where no one person is considered more or less important as the other.  Needs are being met.  There is joy in their fellowship.  Take a moment to think about a time in your life when you experienced the joy and blessing of a deep, loving community?  Where was it, and what made this community so different?  What role did you play in this community? Luke tells us the disciples "devoted themselves" to four essential practices.  The Greek word for "devoted" ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Acts 5:1-11 - Questions for reflection & prayer

This past Sunday we looked at one of the more unsettling stories in the Book of Acts :  the deaths of Ananias and Sapphira.  As shared by Luke, this couple sold a piece of land and then proceeded to bring only a portion of the profit to the apostles - laying it at their feet for the good of the community.  However, what appeared to be their grave mistake (pun intended) was their collusion in claiming to have brought all the proceeds to the apostles when - in fact - they were keeping some back for themselves.  Peter announces first to Ananias the Lord's judgment, followed by a similar verdict being handed down to Sapphira a short time later. Seen by itself, this is a strange story, but it begins to make more sense when we see it as "part of the whole."  The story of Ananias and Sapphira comes right after we hear once again of the community's unity and generosity, including their willingness to share their own goods and resources to take care of one another (ch....
Post a Comment
Read more

Touchdown Jesus

For the second consecutive year, I traveled up US 31 to South Bend, Indiana on a beautiful fall day. I traveled with Curtis Lawrence, and we went for the sole purpose of watching the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team take the field. Now, I must note that it was my childhood dream to attend Notre Dame. Even loftier, it was also my dream - like many young boys growing up in Indiana - to suit up for the Fighting Irish. Surprisingly - even with such hopes - I had never actually visited the campus. For the first thirty years of my life, I never set foot on one of the more storied and celebrated college campus and football meccas in America. That absence was broken, though, when I made that first trip up to South Bend last year. Let me tell you: even after all those years of waiting, the campus and football stadium at Notre Dame lived up to all the out-sized expectations I had. Like most places of prominence, Notre Dame Stadium really cannot be described through words. It is so...
Post a Comment
Read more