Yesterday I was teaching from Mark 15 and the story of Simon of Cyrene. I talked about how the text says he was “pressed into service” which is a polite way of saying he was forced to do something he did not want to do. I tried to give some examples from everyday life when we, ourselves, are “pressed into service.”
One of the main themes we see from this story is how God works through us and for us even in those things we do not want to do. This was certainly the case for Simon. Mark, writing thirty years after the fact, speaks of Simon in such a way to suggest that everyone knows him. Mark mentions the names of his children, again assuming they would be known by the larger community of believers.
I can certainly see how my attitude could be different in situations where I have been “pressed into service.” Perhaps I should enter these experiences with anticipation and expectation of being part of the gracious activity of God?
As we were cleaning up from dinner last night Reese was asked to take some plastic cups and some soda cans to the recycling bin. He gathered up the cans and in a matter of fact way said, “Ah, I’m being pressed into service.”
The nice thing was that he did not appear to be complaining or griping about being asked to help. Since he has a strong interest in recycling this is one of his normal household chores. I just thought it was odd that he made that particular connection.
Isn’t it interesting what your kids pick up from the weekly message?
Randy Wray
May 23rd, 2005 at 11:52 am
I’ve always thought it was wonderful and very scary to see how much our kids pick up from us, as parents, as well as the other adults around them. We have to remember that it’s not just our own kids watching us, but many others in the church and community also.
Reese is a doll.
May 23rd, 2005 at 1:36 pm
I’m looking forward to the time when James is old enough to really talk about these things. For now he’s just incorporating his mom and dad’s quirks and mannerisms into his own repertoire. For the record, he gets the “Oh my gosh!” from Lisa and the “That’s crazytalk!” from me.
May 24th, 2005 at 12:31 pm
It seems (at least with my teen it does) that as our children get older and pass through that wonderful phase known as the teenage years, it is sometimes hard to “press them into service.” My son is almost 15 and he falls into this catagory at times.
On the bright side he does show signs of promise. I attended a “Worship Committee” meeting this past Sunday. I brought my son to the meeting as well. He is an aspiring (although at times a reluctant) worship leader. I had forgotten that I had invited our new Camp (Central Florida Bible Camp) Director to speak at our church that night. He showed up during our meeting so I had to leave to get him set up with our audio / visual people for that evening‚Äôs sermon.
To my surprise after services, my 15 year old (sometimes hard-headed) son brought the paper that I had been taking notes on during the meeting to me. As I looked at the paper I noticed that he had on his own, continued taking notes for me during the rest of the meeting. I gave him a big hug and told him that I was proud of him.
Sometimes the best times are when are children (or adults for that matter) press themselves into service.
May 27th, 2005 at 7:50 pm
Aren’t generally more observant than adults think them to be? I would be more afraid of what they observe and keep to themselves than what they employ in a surprising context.