Roosters and Steers

I grew up in rural Indiana and had many experiences with livestock. One of the great frustrations in dealing with livestock is trying to get them to go where you want them to go. Most of the time coercing them with feed usually does the trick. However, some times no matter how much bribery, coercion, or flat out beating, the animal simply won’t cooperate. I found roosters to be particularly difficult. “Herding” chickens into the coop is a challenging task. As you slip in the last chicken there’s always a rooster who slips out, as you chase him down, all the others escape – back to square one! Steers have the opposite problem. Sometimes they don’t move at all. You can push, pull, prod, and goad with all your might, but you might as well be tugging on a 1,300 pound rock. They simply won’t move.

Working in ministry brings up a lot of the same frustrations I had when I worked with livestock. Sometimes things feel like a whirlwind of feathers and dust. Things are moving a mile a minute, and you can barely hold it all together. Other times things are dead in the water. You try to lead and influence someone or some group with all your might, but still nothing.

I often wonder in those times if this is how ministry is supposed to feel. Is leading others in growing relationships with Christ supposed to be this hard? I wonder if in these times I’m frustrated because I’m trying to do God’s work instead of letting him take a go at it. Maybe I feel like things are out of control, because they really are. Maybe the problem isn’t my circumstances. Maybe it’s me and my illusion of control. Maybe its time to let the steers and roosters go.