Christ Has Need of You

"Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it to me. If anyone asks you, 'Why are you doing this?' say, 'The Lord has need of it and will send it back here shortly.'" -Mark 11: 2-3 (NIV)

We are in the final week of rehearsals for the Carriage House Players production of the comedy, "Christmas Belles." I play Raynerd Chisum, a Forrest Gump-type character who is odd to say the least (I'm glad they didn't type-cast me) but who ends up saving Christmas. It's a hilarious show and a talented cast.

It takes a lot of people to put on a quality production, many of whom don't get much, if any credit. There are prop masters who make sure that props are placed on stage when they're needed, stage hands who move sets around, lighting technicians who hang and operate stage lights. They don't get the cheers, the laughs, and the claps that the actors on stage get but they are essential to the overall success of the show.

In today's suggested scripture reading, Jesus dispatches two disciples to go untie a colt and bring it to him. On the surface, it's probably not as exciting a job as baptizing Jesus (like John did) or being on stage when Jesus healed his mother-in-law (like Peter was) but it is an essential part of the story in that it is fulfilling the Hebrew scripture of Zechariah 9:9. It's communicating an important truth about the kind of king that Jesus is, not someone sent to conquer the enemies of Israel, but someone sent to conquer sin. Their part wasn't perhaps as glamorous as others in the unfolding drama, but it was important and it was needed.

As you look at your life, you may not feel that the part you're playing in God's unfolding story is an important one. You may not be in a position where you get all of the laughs, cheers, accolades, and applause. But your part, if God has called you to do it, is important. Christ has need of it. Christ has need of you.

May God grant you the grace to do your part in the unfolding of God's story on earth. Christ has need of it. Christ has need of you.


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If you're interested in reading through the Bible in a year, this weekend's readings are Job 25-29 and Mark 13-16. I'll be back on Monday with a devotional from Job 30, Psalm 120 and/or Galatians 1-4.