It Is Really For God

Scripture References: Genesis 12:1-9; Acts 10:34

Like a harvester, God gathers his people on Sundays for worship, to celebrate their common faith. Afterwards, like a sower, God broadcasts those same believers like seeds into the community. In a real sense, however, the believer is always at worship, whether gathered or scattered. A surgeon at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis understood that. He walked into the room of a patient preparing for surgery. “See these hands,” he said to her. “They are the best in this hospital. And I want you to know that before I operate, I’ll be on my knees for an hour.”

Peter Drucker said that religion “lives off the excess of culture,” meaning it is something people do in their spare time. Not that surgeon! He saw himself just as righteous when pursuing his career as when he was gathered in formal worship. The offer of his hands to God to prolong human life and reduce human suffering in Christ’s name made his surgery as sacred as a minister’s sermon. May God increase his kind!

Courtesy of Speaker’s Sourcebook of New Illustrations by Virgil Hurley © 1995 by Word, Incorporated.
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.