Cardboard Boxes Can’t Cut Grass.

I went down to Manila last Wednesday and came back on Friday night. We really desperately needed to get a pile of stuff for Sefton Village and so Jonathan & I headed down in my van with a local Pastor who came to help. It was non stop shopping! We got new lights for the Fire Centre, new PA for the church, heaps of things for the Children’s Home, 40 ring-binders & notebooks for the students etc. etc. We were jam packed.

One of the things that Jonathan really needed was a new lawnmower. We had two really old ones but they graduated to the big lawn in the sky a few months ago. Jonathan tried to resurrect them, but the old mowers were no mower. Ahem. Well, we managed to get a good deal on a new Briggs & Stratton 4hp lawnmower WITH a grass catcher! Wow, in the Philippines usually the guy who cuts the grass is also the grass gatherer at the end! So Johnny boy was over the moon.

We got back and unloaded all our stuff. Of course, being a good dad and living in the Filipino culture I had brought back my two kids Pasalubongs (gifts). Just a set of 3 cars from ‘Cars’ for Josiah and a Care bear for Lydia. They started playing enthusiastically for about 3 minutes and then I noticed them looking out the window. There, with a humungus (?) grin on his face, was Jonathan unpacking and building his lawnmower. “It’s very big dad”, “Can I have a go?”, and “Do you think Uncle Jonathan will give it to us?” I was initially very impressed at their apparent interest in things mechanical … but I was confused by their desire for a lawnmower.

They ran outside and the next thing I knew they had brought the object of their desire into the house … no, not the lawnmower but the box of the lawnmower! They played and played, tossed and tumbled, laughed (and cried!), jumped and slid around for around an hour. You should have heard their laughter and obvious excitement. They poked their eyes out the sides and pretended they were serving at McDonalds! Such imaginations. Lightning McQueen and Tender Heart were soon forgotten.

Got me thinking. When Briggs & Stratton built this box, they did not have playing in mind. They didn’t have kids in mind. They didn’t have McDonalds restaurants in mind. All they wanted was an attractive but strong cardboard carton that would protect and advertise their product. But my two excited kids they saw it as a boat, a car and a fast food restaurant. They were not interested in cutting grass; they were interested in having a good time.

A bit like us. Spiritually … we love playing with packaging. We love making the minor major. We often make the major minor. We love to miss the point. We love to dwell in the insignificant. We love to talk. We love to play in the shallows of greatness.

Don’t believe me? God has amazing things for us to do. He shows us plans, dreams and vision. He gives us gifts to use to do the job. He gives us all the authority in heaven to use in any given situation. He gives us His name to combat the works of the enemy. He bestows upon us all the power inherited and won by His Son.

And what do we often do? We argue, we debate, we plan, we consider, we procrastinate, we dwell … anything but get the job done.

Take evangelism. We read books, we watch DVD’s, we talk about it, and we debate the different styles and methods. But only few churches have an evangelistic department or programme. Gifts of Holy Spirit – we know all about each gift, how to use each gift, the purpose of each gift, the power of each gift, we can categorize them into different groupings … but so very few actually use the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the church … or just as importantly... on the street. Prayer – we know we should pray, how important it is, when we should pray, we know we should be at the prayer meeting, but … our prayer meetings are empty. Often our time with the Lord is pushed aside.

We love packaging. We love to talk. We love to play. But packaging will never cut grass. Jonah loved packaging. He was more concerned about a stupid little tree than the eternal destination of 120,000 people.

My friend, there is ‘grass to be cut’. There are people to be won for Christ. There are places that have absolutely no Christian witness. Whole towns and villages are going to hell. There are people who are desperate for a healing touch … just someone to visit them with some encouragement. There are broken people, oppressed people, lonely people, damaged people. Just down your street. You don’t have to walk far to find emptiness.

The crunch of my life came when a couple sang a simple song at a youth conference in Fraserburgh. The song was about a farmer who was a father. All his family and friend were in his house having a party. They were having a ball! But as he looked out to the fields and saw the huge harvest he said to himself, “My house is full … but my fields are empty. Who will go and work for me today?” For me, this was the call of God.

Don’t play with the packaging any more. It’s time to ask the Lord of the Harvest to equip you for the work he has for you. It’s time to seek Him. It’s time to eagerly desire spiritual gifts. It’s time to cry out for your purpose, your vision, your destiny.

Because cardboard boxes can’t cut grass ….

Selah ...