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2004 Sowing Seeds Writing Contest Winner: Sermon "Completing Our Tasks" by Amber Young of Lynchburg, Virginia Pamela Stuart made many promises to people but kept few of them. When she was seven, Pamela promised her best friend, Sherri, that she would come to her birthday party. But, on the day of the party, Pamela didn’t come. At the age of ten, Pamela’s dad signed her up for a two week swimming class. Three days later, Pamela quit. In the tenth grade, Pamela began working on a chemistry class project with her partner, John. In the end, John completed the project alone. As she matured Pamela continued to have difficulty finishing tasks and keeping promises she made to her family, friends, and co-workers. One day, a 22-year-old Pamela was sitting on the back porch steps of her parent’s home. She had been quiet all day. Her mother, Karen, came outside to sit with her and talk. “You seem upset”, her mother said. “You’ve been very quiet today.” “ I just don’t feel like talking”, Pamela replied in a soft voice. She leaned her chin on her knees. Karen continued, “Do you want to tell me what it is?” There was silence. “I think this has something to do with the class.” Pamela put her hands up and covered her face. She began to explain. “Well you know that I just dropped the history class at the community college. And I’m not doing that well in the other classes either.” “Really?” her mother said, moving closer. Tears began to form in Pamela’s eyes. She talked into her hands. “I don’t know why I can’t finish things that I start. For some reason, I don’t keep promises very well. Either I get bored when I have a job to do or I just feel like I can’t do it all because it’s too hard to finish. I don’t know why I feel this way, like a loser.” Karen sat for a moment and looked up into the evening sky. Then she said, “What about your pictures?” “Huh?” Pamela said, confused. “I’m talking about all of the pictures that you’ve taken over the years”, her mother replied. “I’ll bet you have hundreds in your room. You haven’t stopped working with photography. You know how to develop your own photos and now you’ve made wonderful scrapbooks with them.” Pamela shook her head in frustration. “That’s just a hobby, mom”. “Well, there’s Mr. Worthy’s horse next door. Nearly everyday for the past five years you’ve groomed that animal and cleaned out his stall.” Frowning at her mother, Pamela said, “That’s different. I love that horse.” Karen knew she had her daughter’s full attention. She kept talking. “Think about working with your Grandmother Sawyer. Many nights you have stayed with her when she wasn’t feeling well. Your Grandma says that you’re a wonderful caretaker. Standing up and raising her voice, Pamela said, “How can you compare Grandma with what I just talked about. I love Grandma Sawyer. Any time I spend with her is not boring or hard. We’re talking about two totally different things here.” Pamela didn’t feel that her mother understood. Actually, Karen understood quite a lot. She asked Pamela to look up the definition of vow in an old 1977 publication of Webster’s dictionary. Pamela read “one by which a person binds himself to an act, service or condition”. “What does that mean to you, Pamela”? , Karen asked. Pamela shrugged. “It means when you make a vow, you’re stuck. You can’t get out of doing what you say you’re going to do.” Pamela still didn’t understand where her mother was going with the conversation. Karen was not finished. She showed Pamela some bible scripture. Moses was talking to the Israelites after they had left Egypt. God had spoken to Moses earlier. God told Moses how the Israelites must live in the Promise Land after crossing the Jordan River. Pamela’s mother read. “When you make a vow to the Lord your God, be prompt in doing whatever you promised him. For the Lord your God demands that you promptly fulfill all your vows. If you don’t, you will be guilty of sin. However, it is not a sin to refrain from making a vow. But once you have voluntarily made a vow, be careful to do as you have said, for you have made a vow to the Lord your God.” _(Deuteronomy 23: 21-23 NLT) Pamela was thinking and Karen continued to explain. “I believe God is also talking about vows made to others too. God wants us to finish the tasks that we start. We’re not expected to make vows we can’t keep. For instance, people make promises to impress or please others without really counting the costs of fulfilling them. “I never thought about any of that. I don’t think I have ever consciously planned to make a vow. I certainly never knew how God could be involved with the promises I make to others”, said Pamela. “But it seems easy for God to do what he says he can do. After all, he is God.” “Of course, “answered Karen. “God is faithful to fulfill his promises to us. We are made in his image and filled with his spirit. He expects us to be able to do anything we say we can do, with one catch. We must be in agreement with God’s plan. You see God does not want us to make just any vow. We should always pray and plan with God. Never just make a promise in a haphazard way. Always consult God. Ask him if your ideas are right and in line with his plans.” Pamela was really interested. “So you’re saying that anything I have messed up or didn’t finish in the past has been because I did not talk to God first?” “That is part of it”, said her mother. “However, we should never assume we know how God wants us to complete the job. Once we get an “OK” to make a vow, we should communicate with God daily about the task. God is all knowing. He has a schedule for us each day. So when we wake up each day, we must check the schedule.” “How do we do that? “ Pamela wanted to know. “Well there is prayer of course,” said her mother. But you should also begin your day reading the Bible. It is God’s daily message to you. Finally, spend time waiting for God to give you guidance. He will.” “Wow”, said Pamela. Suddenly, her mood changed. Her face brightened. I guess that I’m not a total loser. I can do some things right.” “Of course you can”, encouraged her mother. “I have accomplished some things in my life-those I love to work with each day. It must be really important to love or feel strongly confident about a task before I start it.” “ Just remember,” said her mother, “Love God first and then your tasks can be accomplished. You may not always feel total confidence when you begin. You will need to dedicate yourself to the tasks. But you can succeed because God will be your partner.” “Mom, I think I’m beginning to understand. I know that I’ve already dropped the class. But, maybe I could pick up another. I really do want to finish at the community college. I want a degree that I can apply to my work with photography, something I really love doing.” Karen hugged her and said, “I would say, that’s a good idea. But, why don’t you spend some time in prayer just to make sure it’s the best idea.” Do you make promises you don’t keep? Do you give up on tasks before they are completed? Always consult God before making decisions. He has the perfect plan for your life. When you follow God’s plan, you will make the right choices and God will give you the strength to follow through with even the hardest of life’s tasks. Talk to him today. You can email encouragement to Amber at: RCY3460@AOL.COM ------------------------------------------------------- Honorable Mention Sermons "Too Much Stuff" by Annette S. Bogard of Derby, Kansas "It is the Lord: Don't be Afraid" by Erica Jantzen of Waterloo, Ontario "What Are You Praising God For?" by Autherine Allison of East Elmhurst, New York "Maintaining God's Temple" by Marc D. Greenwood of Akron, Ohio "Is True Worship Living In You?" by Kriss Erickson of Everett, Washington "I was Almost Here" by Teresa Spies Dempewolf of Modesto, California For information on our 2005 Writing Contest, please click here. |