Will you stand in for the Lord?

I mentioned in an earlier post that yesterday afternoon I helped out with the Annual Pierce Baptist Home golf tournament at the River Ridge Golf course in Lisbon. I arrived at 8:00 a.m. and expected to be there a few hours and then head home to take care of some business. That all changed when I spoke with our President.

For the last five years Len has been the one to greet all the golfers and then glad hand them at the end of the day. He has served as the MC for the delivery of awards and raffle prizes. After all, he is the one who most people identify with when they think of Pierce Home and Creamery Brook from the corporate side.

When I arrived Len asked me if he could help him out. An emergency had come up and he needed to take care of some business. He asked me to step in for him and do take on the role he usually played. I didn't think much of it and readily agreed. I figured it was the least I could do.

I didn't realize what I had agreed to until much later in the day. When the golfers began coming in, so many of them asked for Len. Year after year they were used to seeing him and chatting with him. Then one woman came in who represented one of our sponsors. It was then that I realized just how much Len meant to the tournament and I felt like a poor substitute as a stand in.

I got through the afternoon and many people told me I did a good job. But I began thinking about this idea of a stand in and couldn't help think about what we do as we stand in for Christ. Many people want to get to know Jesus. They have heard about him and they long for his appearing in their lives. But Jesus sends us to go and greet them and minister to them in his name. Once we stand in, he fills the gap.

It is an awesome responsibility. Our job is not to be Christ but to be the best representative we can. If we do our job, we will bless the people we meet. Some of them may even feel they have been with the Lord. That's the best we can hope for. So when the call comes, don't hesitate. Just say "Yes!"

Cal