During the commissioning service for CBF Global Missions in Charlotte, NC, Rob Nash got my attention when he surprised me in his sermon by saying that “God doesn’t give a rip about what you’re doing…”  He was of course referencing multiple conversations in which he’d heard people express great pride in what they, their church, or their organization was doing for missions.  (His point was that it’s not all about us but about what God is doing and desires with this earth.)

This stuck with me because I had several encounters with people during the assembly and afterwards who surprisingly and determinedly “give a rip.”  They were young people, very idealistic about helping the neglected, poor or those who lacked justice.  They were also older individuals who had time on their hands and wanted to do something meaningful with it.   I also encountered quite a few of our field personnel who serve around the globe.  They were busy talking with people interested in what they were doing and where they lived.  I noticed  with amusement how animated they were as they spoke—gesturing with their hands as they explained the culture they’d adopted to their newly made friends. 

It was a wonderful experience for me.  I soaked it all in until there was no capacity left to absorb.  You could have walked across the Great Lakes, at the end of each day, while I was there.  I was inspired by great minds and silver tongues during the worship services and overwhelmed at times by the readiness of people to go and invest themselves in others around the globe. 

There was one disappointment in the midst of all this enthusiasm frenzy. Driving home after it was all over, I reflected on what one person had whispered in my ear near the conclusion of the event.  He was an old friend, afflicted physically by disease and time, who had been badly bruised by religion and politics—combined cruelly in several churches he’d served.  He said, “This is almost enough to make me give a rip again.”  Then he sighed and moved on.  Reflecting on that parting word, I hope he was able to travel back home and rest up after all the exertion.  I also hope he can muster the strength to open the windows to his life and let the enthusiasm back in.  I’m hopeful  by the fact that he came and was tempted by others “giving a rip.”