Serving Bread

Why is it that some of the greatest moments of the life of my community happen in my absence? I recall several moments in recent memory, where something extraordinary happened and I missed it. Just recently, I was told by the leader of our newest community at LA Pierce College that the Bible Study was “awesome.” She told me how people were engaged with one another and with the text that they were studying. I had missed it and I could only celebrate on the report I heard.

The following week, when I attended the Bible Study, it was not very exciting. The leader told me after the Bible Study that she was disappointed because it did not compare to the previous week’s study. People often have significant spiritual and leadership experiences outside of my (the leader’s) presence.

A spiritual director once mentioned to me that I would have to trust that God would be at work both in my presence and my absence. I can be aware of how I am supposed to minister in my presence, but it has been much more faith stretching to believe that God can work in my absence. He clearly can and does.

There are two stories out of the life of Jesus that illustrate this insight well—Luke 10 and John 9. In Luke 10, Jesus sends his disciples to minister. He equips them, exhorts them and sends them to the various towns. When these disciples return, they are full of joy. They saw God’s power. Jesus did not accompany them on the ministry trips. They saw the power of God apart from Jesus. In John 9, when a blind man is healed, he suffers through considerable persecution. Jesus is nowhere to be found as the man defends the healing. The man’s faith and testimony grows apart from Jesus’s presence.

In both these stories, Jesus’s absence facilitates significant faith and leadership. Those who are following Jesus are seeing their faith and resolve strengthened apart from Jesus’s presence.

But Jesus is not completely absent in these stories. He seems to leverage his absence, rather than simply disappear and enjoy some much needed vacation. When the disciples return from their ministry assignment in Luke 10 and when the formerly blind man in John 9 is kicked out of the temple, they are met by Jesus. He receives them and he interprets for them their experience. In the case of Luke 10, he gives them a spiritual insight for their ministry. And in John 9, Jesus reveals himself to be the one worthy to be worshiped.

Absence without debrief is wasteful. People will see faith and leadership emerge when we are not present. However, if it is not debriefed well, they may not capitalize on those lessons, rendering those experiences useless.

I try to debrief every Bible Study with the leader at LA Pierce. She and I both know that I do not plan on being present at every Bible Study she leads. However, I intend to leverage my absence to develop more faith and leadership in her.

I particularly sense that doing so is most wise in the context of LA Pierce. In a few months, this leader will graduate and transfer to a four-year school outside of my leadership influence. She will have a choice within her new context to either practice faith and leadership or to shrink back. She will not be able to rely on my leadership in her new context. My hope is that her development at LA Pierce will prepare her not only for her new context, but for life.

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