In the movie, Leatherheads, there is a scene where the Duluth Bulldogs are playing a “Mud Bowl” type game against Chicago. It’s the end of the game and Duluth has to have a trick play to win. So Dodge Conner (George Clooney) uses one play to take out one of Chicago’s players, and trades places with him as they carry him off the field. Because mud covered every player on both teams, no one notices. This means that Dodge is covering his own man. The perfect distraction—Duluth wins!

Distractions can be good. We all need something to take our minds off the dragons that have us in turmoil or tangled in details. But, when there is a pressing matter that needs our attention, distractions can render us ineffective and waste our opportunities.

In Mark chapter 9, Jesus spent some time on a mountain with Moses and Elijah. Peter, James and John were also at this meeting and as they returned to the town, they found the other nine Apostles engaged in an argument with the teachers of the Law. Jesus says, “What are you arguing about?” Out of the crowd a man speaks up and says, “Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by an evil spirit . . . I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not” (Mark 9:17-18).

There you have it. The father brings his son, tormented by an evil spirit and because the Apostles were not spiritually prepared to face this evil spirit, they could not cast it out. Instead of dealing with their own spiritual weakness, taking the boy to a private place to minister to him, taking him to Jesus so that He could cast it out, instead of any other course of action, they got into a shouting match with the teachers of the Law about the fact that they couldn’t cast out this evil spirit.

And the Enemy wins.

What frustrated Jesus here is not the evil spirit. You can see that by the way he dealt with it that is was not a giant battle for him. No, what frustrated Jesus was the unbelief and the lack of preparedness in his own followers. For while his disciples argued about their own efficacy and power, a boy still was being tortured.

We see this in politics, where those we elect go and fight with one another on Capitol Hill and the talk shows, while ignoring the real people who need help. They say their fighting for us, but it’s rarely about us. It happens in churches too. While people need to know the love and forgiveness of God, “leaders” argue about what they want or don’t want to happen. I wonder . . . if Jesus walked into our building or attended one of our meetings, would he say, “Keep up the good work?” or “What are you arguing about?”

telemicus out

Back in the mid 70’s our family lived in Kirksville, Missouri where my dad, Jonathan preached. In the trenches of ministry, it is sometimes hard to see if you are making any progress. We see challenges, we take on the opposition, we beg God for help, we walk faithfully and we wonder; Am I making any difference? But now and then, we find out that something we never expected was a big deal. Rocky Veach was a young boy when I met him. This is how it happened.

Dad sent out a mass mailing in our town offering a free Bible Correspondence Course. Out of four thousand fliers, he received eight responses. Rocky’s mom was one of them. She finished the course, in time had further Bible studies, and was baptized. Rocky and his brothers began to ride the church Joy Bus to Sunday school.

One Sunday morning, Rocky missed the bus. I think he was about ten years old. He called a cab and paid with his own money for a ride to church. I remember one of the men at church saying, “We have adult members who don’t want to be here bad enough to do that.” He looked like most any boy I guess. He had long hair, thin build and loved being at church. So whatever happened to Rocky?

This week, with the help of a friend, I found him. Rocky was, he says, “radically” saved at the age of 18. From 1984 to 1986, Rocky attended Rhema Bible Training Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He also met and married his wife Bobbi, during that time. Rocky has been involved in ministry for more than twenty years. Today, Rocky Veach oversees TORCH Ministries and directs IMN, a Missions based organization dedicated to spreading the Gospel, while helping the poor and needy around the world. Rocky travels internationally, ministering in churches, conferences, and Bible Schools. Together, Rocky and Bobbi also pastor, “Connections Church” in New York’s Hudson Valley.

This is what Rocky said to me.

“Please tell your father I have often reflected on the way the Lord used the Joy Bus and am very appreciative of the impact your family made on my life as a young boy.  It is amazing how passing acts of service and leadership can have eternal results, sometimes in the least likely of candidates.”

We never know what the simplest act of service might mean to a person or to the world. Nice going Pop!

telemicus out