The story is told of a pig, a chicken and a cow living together on the farm. They loved the farmer who fed and cared for them on a daily basis. One day the chicken came to the cow and the pig with an idea. Since the farmer had been so good to them, they ought to do something special for the farmer. The cow and pig readily agreed, but deciding on what to do was harder than originally thought. Finally, the cow recommended making the farmer breakfast. The chicken thought it was a perfect idea, and suggested bacon and eggs with a cup of milk. With the chicken and the cow quickly on board with the plan, the pig pipped in with his concern. “All this sounds really good,” he said, “but just remember that while you’re making a contribution, I’m making a commitment.”
The line between simply contributing to an organization and being fully committed to an organization may be very grey, but the distinction may also be significant for sure. Contribute may mean the bare minimum or giving the least amount of effort. On the other hand, commitment may reflect how the person is all in, and willing to sink or swim with the group or the mission.
A student goes to school, and depending on whether she’s there for a contribution or commitment may reflect in the grades she’s earning. An athlete plays a sport, and whether he disciplines his body while working his technique or simply relies on his own talent, may be the difference between making a contribution or an all-in commitment. Co-workers shows up for work. If they are making a contribution, they are on time (barely) and finish their work as requested, but not early. If you need help on your project, you probably cannot ask them for help because they’re really not committed.
For the past couple of weeks, we’ve been studying Exodus 3-6, and one of the themes reoccurring is Moses’ unwillingness to fully commit to God’s call to lead in the liberation of Israel. At the burning bush he gave four excuses why he shouldn’t lead Israel (Ex. 3:11,13; 4:1, 10) and then one plea in desperation for God to look elsewhere for a “volun-told” (Ex. 3:13 [contrast to Is. 6:8]). On the road to Egypt, God comes to Moses to kill him because he has not circumcised his sons (Ex. 4:24-26). While the story has generated much discussion as to its meaning, some scholars believe that Moses has not fully bought into his role to liberate Israel (i.e. if he’s not going to take the Covenant God made with Abraham seriously, why would he take his role as liberator seriously?). Then, in his first confrontation with Pharaoh, even though God warned Moses that Pharaoh will harden his heart, Moses is exasperated to discover the difficulty of his appointed task (Ex. 4:21-23; 5:22-23).
Moses got off to a slow start before he was finally “all-in” for liberating Israel. The good news is that once Moses bought in, God did marvelous things through him.
I wonder if the church, as a whole, has been satisfied with offering a contribution instead of being fully committed. From a contribution standpoint, attendance, the number of times someone shows up to the assembly, is the bare minimum found among congregants. Let someone else lead the prayer, read the Scripture, serve the tables, or more importantly, teach the class, cook the meal, visit the sick, etc.
In every make up of a church, you have those who are willing to offer a contribution and those fully committed. When the number of those committed are more than those willing to contribute, the church and her ministries function smoothly. However, when the number of those who simply offer a contribution outweigh the number of those committed, the church struggles to thrive or to sustain itself. So the next time you have a glass of milk, a scrambled egg or a ham sandwich, maybe you can ask yourself, “Am I committed, or just making a contribution?”
Soli Deo Gloria!
(i.e. only God is glorified!)