A Noble Note: May 2025
A Look Into Zion’s Ministries
I was listening to an audiobook the other day and was reminded about a joyful, and yet stressful, reality of the ministry. By feeding the flock, there will eventually be a mess to clean up after. The author spoke about how being a pastor has a lot in common with being a farmer. Obviously, there are some big differences: farming deals with a lot of physical labor where pastoral role deals with more reading and conversation. But both are immersed in the labor of love, and are driven by passion, and involve acts of selfless care and investing oneself into working towards growth. But what these two vocations have most in common is that, even though it takes knowledge and skill to accomplish their tasks, it’s mostly centered around patience and trust (a lot of patience and trust!) in God bringing about the result;
As Paul reminds us in his letter to the church in Corinth, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building.” (Cor. 3:6-9)
I think what is one of the most difficult things about this is that we can do everything in the right order and the right way and in the right timing, and it still might not work out. That’s because the results are ultimately all up to God. This is where patience and trust come in.
I can only assume that many of you are like me, stuck in our own expectations of how things should be and how quickly we should see the results. I am very excited to be ministering here at Zion, but I can easily find myself thrown off, unsure, and confused by the results of ministry. This usually gets me caught up in a cycle of doubt and questions: Did I do or say the right thing? Am I doing enough? Am I the right fit for this calling? How are people receiving and viewing the things that are going on? Do I actually know what I’m doing?
You might be feeling the same way in your home life, at work, and even when it comes to your involvement within the ministries of this church. Like me, you might question your ability and effort when it comes to congregational board meetings and children’s programs and community outreach and mission work. And it can be quite frustrating when we don’t often see the immediate results in what we’re doing. It might take weeks, months, years, even decades to show the fruit of your labor within this congregation.
But we must remember that the growth and the result are not up to us, but to God. All we can do is be faithful in the tasks that are before us and, like I’ve heard from my many conversations with farmers, we have to have patience, we have to keep praying, and we have to trust God that God is not only in control, but that He knows what is best for us, our families, and our church.
When it comes to ministry, farming, family, raising kids, or just life in general, I’m often brought back to this helpful reality: “Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.” (Prov. 14:4)
And what this means is that if we want to be a productive, growing, impactful congregation, family member, or individual, we will need to face the mess that comes with it. As much as I like to keep things tidy and clean and in pristine condition, life doesn’t happen in that way. Ministry, farming, family, life, it’s all hard work and it can often become messy. But within and beyond that mess, we see the joy of life and the faithful care of our Heavenly Father.
Look at the cattle as an example: You feed them, provide them shelter, and keep them healthy, but they still sometimes refuse to eat, they still get sick, they still wear down and ruin the barns and gates, and they still manage to get you-know-what everywhere! But that is part of the calling. That comes with caring for animals and people. And we do it not just for the good, fun parts, but to faithfully serve and find peace and purpose even in the messy parts.
I hope that you can tell that I’m excited for what God has in store for all of us here at Zion. And if I may be honest, I’m pretty nervous about it too. I’m looking forward to the joy that we will share together, but also realistic about the mess we will face together. May we step into the future, not knowing what the days will bring, but having patience and trust in the God who guides our way and will bring about our good even in the messiest of situations.
This is why I am going to be doing the things I am going to do. I have been called here to preach to you the Truth of God’s Word, which involves bringing up your sins and calling you out to repent, but then know that I will also be there to deliver Christ’s forgiveness and renewal. I have been called to protect you from the harm and danger of this world, even though it might seem as if I’m being too picky, not understanding, and insensitive. And because of my love and care for you, this is why I will push you to an active lifestyle within this church, encouraging you to a regular worship attendance and participation within a Bible study. This is why I will do my best to rejoice by your side when things are going well and to cry with you when things are not.
I will mess this up from time to time and we will not always see the results we are hoping for. I know that sadly I will not meet all of your needs and expectations. And I know that the reverse is also true. But as long as we keep Christ crucified and risen in the center of everything we do, and as long as we lead with God’s same grace and mercy and forgiveness that He has given to us, then I know we will flourish into whatever God’s will is for this congregation.
And because God the Father has brought His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, into our lives, I know that He will also bring growth through our planting and watering. He will also bring an abundance of life through the mess that our lives produce.
In His Service,
Pastor Andy Noble