Mow your lawn

Recently I had lunch with two good friends and the subject of local high school football came up. We have a mutual acquaintance who coaches a high school team in an affluent school district. Try as he may, the coach diligently works to inspire the players to excel, to give their total effort and to work hard to improve. But sadly this high school coach acknowledges that despite all of his encouragement and cajoling of his players the motivation just does not exist as compared to players from a less pampered upbringing. The coach said with some resignation; “…I can’t expect much from kids who don’t even mow their own lawn.”

As we age we all tend to sound like our parents before us and shake our heads at the next generation. But it does seem that we are raising a generation of kids that are not challenged academically, not asked to work, not held accountable for their actions and expect things to just get handed to them. College professors have commented to me that their students approach them with statements of unfairness in their expectations, that they are too demanding and that they are entitled to a college degree without working for it.

But before we get too judgmental on the younger generation we need to ask ourselves what type of example we are setting for them especially when it comes to spiritual matters. Is that how we approach our spiritual life sometimes; we don’t mow our own lawn? We come to church each Sunday and sleepily watch as the Pastor presents the Gospel, we listen mindlessly to the choir sing or to the special music, or half listen as the Sunday school teacher toils to keep us awake and focused. How disheartening it must be for a Pastor to look out over the congregation and see us nodding off, looking at our watches, day dreaming, scanning the audience or with an expressionless look of boredom.

After we leave the church grounds do we stop to admire or consider “the lawn” that the Pastor has just mowed for us? Or do we walk right by into our daily life and never give it a second thought? Just like the beauty of a fresh cut lawn and the smell of grass clippings we should savor the experience and breathe in God’s Word. Otherwise what is the point?

It must come as little surprise to Pastors when they see people struggle in their Christian walk. We fail to own our faith, know what we believe, (or WHY we believe it), how we got the Canon of scripture, or think that doctrine and theology are reserved for Pastors to understand. Do we say in our inaction; “Thanks Pastor for mowing the yard…see you next week” or “Next time can you mow it like this” or “Hey you missed a spot…”

When we make our children memorize 2 Timothy 2:15 why don’t we take it to heart as well; “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

The next generation will take things only as seriously as the example we set. Own your faith…mow your own lawn!