Those Who've Gone Before Us Light The Way...

One of my favorite songs of all time is the song "Find Us Faithful." It is an older song, one that was written by Steve Green some years ago. But it is a song that has stuck with me throughout the years. It means so much to me that it was one of the songs that I chose to have as part of my ordination service. Perhaps it is because of how it talks about life as a journey, a metaphor that I find deeply meaningful in my own life. Regardless, it is a beautiful prayer, and one that I pray will be found true of me. It may not be a song you know, so let me share the lyrics with you:

Find Us Faithful by Steve Green
We're pilgrims on the journey of the narrow road 

And those who've gone before us line the way
Cheering on the faithful, encouraging the weary
Their lives a stirring testament to God's sustaining grace

Surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses 
Let us run the race not only for the prize
But as those who've gone before us
Let us leave to those behind us
The heritage of faithfulness passed on through godly lives


CHORUS:
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful

May the fire of our devotion light their way
May the footprints that we leave
Lead them to believe
And the lives we live inspire them to obey
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful


After all our hopes and dreams have come and gone

And our children sift through all we've left behind
May the clues that they discover and the memories they uncover
Become the light that leads them to the road we each must find
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful 

Life can be extremely hard at times. Being a follower of Christ isn't always the easiest task on earth. It often times requires going against the status quo, challenging the crowd, being a voice for the voiceless, living the way Jesus lived during His time on earth. But these lyrics remind us that we don't journey alone. We journey alongside other followers of Christ. And we follow in the footsteps of countless generations of others who have gone before us, who were faithful to the calling, and whose testimony of a faithful God light our way.

We all have people in our lives who walk with us, who have gone before us, who have provided an example of what it means to be faithful. Perhaps for you it is a friend, a parent, a pastor or teacher, a grandparent...or maybe you have been fortunate enough to have several or even all of these people who have helped you as you journey through life with Christ.

While I have several people that come to mind, today I want to share with you about my Grandmother. Tomorrow would have been her 73rd birthday. We sent her on to be with Jesus just over 2 years ago after a courageous battle with cancer. I recently came across the recording of her memorial service which took place on February 16, 2009. She was indeed one who has been found faithful, and the footprints that she has left on my life encourage and teach me every day as I seek to live a life that leads others to "the road we each must find."

 Here are the words that I shared about her that night:

In the Gospel of Luke, the story is told about Jesus visiting the home of Mary and Martha. In chapter 10, beginning with verse 38, we read these words:

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

In the last couple of months as Grandmother became weaker and weaker from the affects of her cancer and it became more and more clear that her race was almost won, the Lord kept bringing this story to mind when I would think of Grandmother.

Sarah and I had the very special privilege of having our grandparents close by. Hardly a day went by when we still lived at home that we didn’t see her and as I began to look back at her life I realized why God kept bringing me back to this story again and again.

When most pastors and scholars talk about this passage they praise Mary as the model. After all, Jesus does tell Martha that Mary has chosen the better part. But if you look closely at the story you will notice that Jesus doesn’t really condemn Martha for tending to the meal and worrying about making her guests comfortable. After all, the gift of hospitality is one of the spiritual gifts. I believe that when we listen closely to Jesus’ words and when we consider this passage in the broader context of Jesus’ ministry, we will discover that the model woman is actually a Mary-Martha combination.

My grandmother represented this combination as well as any woman I know. She was committed to her church, she loved her Lord, and she studied her Bible regularly. She did, indeed, take plenty of time to sit at her Lord’s feet and learn. But she also spent a great deal of time serving others. Whether you found yourself sitting around a table at one of the many restaurants she and Granddaddy ran, enjoying one of  her many wonderful dishes at a church potluck or family gathering, or sitting around her kitchen table, you knew to expect nothing less than the best. She enjoyed cooking, especially for others. And that is something that she has passed on to Mom, and Aunt Mel, and Sarah, and I. In fact one of my most prized possessions is a cookbook with a collection of hand written recipes of some of my favorite foods that she made. I use that book often, but I have to confess things never seem to turn out quite like they did when she made them.

Yes, my Grandmother was a great balance of the Mary-Martha combination. She loved her Lord, her church and serving others and she loved her family. She was always very supportive of us, expecially Sarah and I. From our Kindergarten plays to piano recitals, to band concerts and competitions, to graduations, to my ordination almost 2 years ago she was always there to show her support. In fact it was at my ordination that her “hints” about her desire to become a Great-Grandmother and have a great-grandchild went from subtle ones to quite blunt. As she held the baby of one of my closest friends in her lap, she looked at me and said, “Naomi, don’t you think we need one of these?” And about a year later, I called her to let her know that her wish had come true and at that point she started praying for a boy. And several months later I called to let her know that once again her prayers had been ansewered and she would be the Great-Grandmother to Elijah. She wasted no time hitting the stores and within weeks brought several outfits over for him after one of her treatments. I know the expectation of his arrival gave her something to fight for and while they won’t meet in person on this earth, I know that she will watch over him and he will know her through our stories and through the footprints that she has left on each of our lives.

I am challenged by her example of what it means to be a woman of God. What a blessing it is to have had such an example to light my way.  As a wife to a wonderful husband and mother to a vibrant, adorable toddler, it can be such a challenge to find time to spend with God. It is so easy to be like Martha and get caught up in doing life. There are certainly days when I wish I could be Mary and sit at Jesus' feet, soaking in all that He has to say. But a 2-year-old pulling at my leg, "Mommy, I need snack!" or "Mommy, let's pay tains (play trains)!" brings me back to the reality that I am called to be both Mary and Martha. I am called to serve and to listen, often times both at the same time. 


Thank God for those who have gone before us who have shown us that it can be done. It isn't easy, but through God's grace, we can. And when our journey on earth comes to an end...

Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
May the fire of our devotion light their way
May the footprints that we leave
Lead them to believe
And the lives we live inspire them to obey
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful.