“Feed My Lambs”
The week of January 8th 2017 is one that changed my life forever. While most of the world passed by or waited expectantly for the coming change of office in our nation’s Capitol, a more personal, and in some ways, more profound transition was taking place in the Kingdom of Heaven. It began late in the evening on Sunday the 8th when a simple and routine run to the local Dollar General turned into a world shaking and life altering tragedy. A man who seemed larger-than-life was suddenly gone leaving a wife and three children in the wake. The Rev. Dr. Wade Ivey had lived a life of near endless impact and the news of his death began to have a similar effect.
I first got word of the car accident early in the morning on Monday, January 9th. Within a few hours the unthinkable had been confirmed and the long process of grief began. A grieving family was joined by its closest friends, and then a network of people from near and far emerged until, it seemed, the entire sum of those touched by Pastor Wade, as he was often called, had been summoned by the Spirit of God to take on this painful but necessary task together.
I am just one of those people, and by taking part in this grief, it has impacted me wholly. Pastor Wade was no small part of my life. As a teenager living in a single parent home with my mother, his entrance into my life was nothing less than divine intervention. At just the right time, God provided me with a father figure who took me under his wing and began to mentor me. As a small and timid youth full of fear and insecurity, Pastor Wade displayed and imparted a sense of confidence and love that I desperately needed. Over time, God would use him to help me discover my calling and cultivate my gifts and talents. Like countless others, his influence changed the entire trajectory of my life, all the way to my choice in a spouse, career, and the very church that I now serve.
As the week went on, the reality of his death began to sink in and arrangements were made for a celebration of his life. Along with several other pastors whom Wade had personally groomed for ministry, I was given the great honor but difficult task of speaking at his service. Just the thought of standing over his body and trying to express the significance of his life overwhelmed me, but it was a task that he himself had prepared me for. Many times I had watched him stand in a similar place that I now stood, and his memory inspired me yet again.
Throughout the course of two days, this same inspiration Wade had sown into thousands of lives would lead them to respond in person. A sea of people waited hours to convey their condolences to the bereaved family while the sounds of life filled a space where death was thought to reign. There was no shortage of tears, nor was there a lack of laughter as countless jokes were re-told and memories were remembered of the good times we all had with Wade and each other. If ever there was victory in the face of death, and joy in the face of sorrow, it was during those two days. On the day of his funeral, God’s Spirit rose up the standard of hope in our resurrected Lord Jesus Christ, and the Lion of Judah dealt a blow to the enemy of death itself through the praises of Gods people! That dreadful day gave way to a peace and comfort that surpassed understanding which lasted deep into the night.
And then there was Sunday.
Along with a grieving family was a grieving church. As we all gathered at the church that morning, the physical and emotional toil could be seen and felt. Thankfully, a remnant of those who had attended his service the day before remained to help ease the pain of this difficult transition. Faithfully, the Spirit of God infused each of us with fresh life and comfort as we worshiped amidst great pain, and we were again “more than conquerors.” Rather than being victims of a tragedy, the family, church, and friends took their first step in the journey towards victory.
As I stood on the platform where, just one week earlier, Pastor Wade himself had stood, I felt the profound significance of that place. Like a relay runner stretching his hand back with the baton, Wade had mentioned me and many others in his last message entitled “Consumed By The Call”, and I knew that God himself had been preparing us for the hand-off. Like the Apostle Paul, Wade had “finished the race” and left the next leg to us. It was our turn to take the legacy of our faith forward for the next generation, but how? How could we fill the space that this spiritual giant had left?
While meditating about my own response to Wade’s passing and the mantle of God’s calling that was passed to those of us who remained, a passage of Scripture entered my mind. In the gospel of John chapter 21 there is a scene of a similar transition that offers answers to these questions.
After His death and resurrection, Jesus made one of several appearances to His disciples. One of them, Simon Bar-Jonah, whom we all know as Peter, had a life-changing conversation with Jesus that fateful morning that would compel him to once again take up his own cross and fulfill the calling of Christ.
Remember, this is the same Peter who had denied Jesus completely on the eve of His crucifixion. So what would restore Peter to a place of service and enable him to eventually lay down his own life for the sake of Jesus Christ?
It all starts with feeding. Scripture tells us that Jesus served them a meal of bread and fish and they ate. Once again, Jesus proved himself as the source of their sustenance, both physical and spiritual. Then, Jesus and Peter commence a famous dialogue whereby Peter’s love is questioned and his future is pronounced. Amidst this exchange, Jesus offers three instructions to Peter:
- to feed Jesus’ lambs,
- to tend His sheep,
- and to feed His sheep.
As I thought about the very first transfer of Christ’s calling, God showed me the progression that led Peter, and every other follower of Christ, to the finish line of our faith.
It begins with feeding the lambs. These precious, small, helpless creatures depend on their shepherds for food and reciprocate their gratitude with affection. Soon, we become attached to the lambs, as they are to us, until we cannot help but see and respond to their every need, tending to them as they grow to become sheep. As sheep, we shepherd them, continually moving and searching out new pastures from which they can be fed. We invest more and more of our time and ourselves in them until we are inseparable. When danger arises we defend them. When one gets lost we pursue them. We lose sleep for them, endure hardship for them, and invest our lives and our love in them until one day, if necessary, we will lay down our very life for them.
Jesus didn’t tell Peter to die for Him or for His sheep, even though He prophesied that he would.
In His wisdom, Jesus knew that the pathway to Peter’s destiny was one that began and ended, not with Peter’s zeal, but Peter’s love.
And on that Sunday, standing in the place where Wade once stood, in my heart I heard the same voice that called Peter, Wade, and all who will listen, calling to me as I stood up to preach…
“Feed my Lambs.”
Such As I Have I Give,
In Jesus’ name
#ConsumedbytheCall
For more information about how Wade Ivey’s legacy is going forward visit:
https://www.consumedbythecall.org/
