Good morning. Today we are going to continue in our series called, “Life On The Farm.” If you were unable to be here last week, we began a series that is going to take a look at a few things that I have observed this summer in my time on a Dairy Farm in Indiana, and a day of bailing hay with Keith. Last week we began, and we took a look at the lessons that can be learned from Putting Up Hay. Today, we move on, and I will share a story with you from mine and Nellie’s trip to Indiana, to a friend’s Dairy Farm.
Before we do that, let’s begin our time with a word of prayer. Let’s Pray!
One of the main things that we found while we were in Indiana on this Dairy Farm was manure. So, today, we are going to see What We Can Learn From Manure!
Allow me to set the scene for you. Nellie and I took off driving one Thursday leaving at about 5:00 in the evening, headed for Wabash, Indiana. One of our friends from school lives there, and we wanted to go and spend a couple of days with her and her family. We drove all evening, and pulled into their driveway at about 11:00. It had been raining slightly on the way, so we had the air conditioner on, and the widows up. When we arrived, we stepped out of the car and received a wonderful greeting. It was not the greeting of the people we were there to see. Rather, it was a greeting of a foul odor.
Needless to say, along with cows, they had plenty of manure as well. As soon as Nellie stepped out of the car, you could tell she didn’t like it one bit. As we went into the house, you would expect the smell to go away. But when you live on a farm, and leave the windows open, the smell just seeps right in.
Now it was an interesting week. We had a lot of fun, and got to do a lot of neat things while we were there on their farm. But one thing remained the same all week long. The cows kept pooping, and the smell never went away.
It was funny, Nellie had packed our bags, but she failed to realize that we were staying on a real farm. Needless to say, she packed all pretty nice clothes for the weekend, and no clothes that could be worn around the farm. Fortunately, the girl we were staying with had plenty of clothes for us to borrow.
Now, what I want you to be able to realize this morning has nothing to do with our clothes or being prepared for the farm. Instead, I want you to realize this: It is often life’s inconveniences and discomforts that produce the greatest opportunities for grace!
Go ahead and turn with me to Mark 6:30-44. Here in this passage, we are reading out the disciples returning from their first mission, and the feeding of the 5 thousand. Now as we read this passage, think about the idea of manure as you listen. Here is what it has to say. Mark 6:30-44 says, “1”
Now, this is an interesting story and is “framed” in an interesting way in Mark’s Gospel. It comes at the end of the disciple’s first commissioned journey by Jesus. We looked at this last time in the sermon “Putting Up Hay.”
As I look at this story, it must be significant that Mark makes more of a deal about their return than he did talking about their going in the first place. It is here that we find the nature of real discipleship, it is not in their deeds but in their obedience to His requests and their returning to Him. You see, the root of discipleship is attachment to Jesus. This is where the life that He promises comes from.
Now I would guess that the disciples were fatigued, tired, and worn out. And Jesus’ invitation to come away and get some rest provided some hope of refreshment for them. So they all pile in the boat and head out for some well-deserved R & R. But you read the story, you know what happened next. People saw them, knew where they were headed, and beat them there. When they arrived, there were people already there waiting on them.
Now, from my understanding, manure is the oldest and most effective fertilizer known to man. As long as man has used domesticated animals and worked the soil, manure has been used to feed the soil and plants. Here are some interesting facts for you. Manure can return 70% of the nitrogen, 75% of the phosphorus, and 80% of the potash that was taken from the soil to feed the animals. This is not a bad return if you consider that the average dairy cow produces 27 thousand pounds of manure per year.
The value of manure was still understood when man moved to the city. It was gathered and piled outside city gates where all could share in its value. Without manure to place in the field, the nutrients and trace minerals in the soil would soon be depleted and the land would no longer support a commercial crop.
To many, manure is just waste. But farmers know it is filled with untapped potential. The same is true with some of the unpleasant times in our lives as well. As you look at this story, you can clearly see that the disciples and Jesus looked at this turn of events quite differently, and that is what I want us to look at together this morning.
First, The Disciples Saw This Time As A Waste.
To them, this was an intrusion; a rude interruption on their vacation! Their words do not hide their frustration either: “By this time it was late in the day, so His disciples came to Him. “This is a remote place,” they said, “and it’s already very late. Send the people away so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.””
The disciples had been ministering to people for days. They themselves were hungry, they were tired of dealing with people, and they needed a break from all of it. This intrusion was unwelcome, and had no basic value as far as they could tell. These people needed to “GO AWAY!”
It was all very rational to them, even if they wanted to, they didn’t have the resources to feed these people. But Jesus looked at this entire situation differently. To the disciples the crowds were a problem. But to Jesus they were sheep without a shepherd.
To many, manure is just waste; but farmers know it is filled with untapped potential. Jesus has one desire, and that is to take care of these people. What others saw as a waste, Jesus saw as an opportunity to express God’s grace and love. What others wanted to discard and send away, Jesus chooses to make the most important part of the day!
Now, when it comes to us, there are times, as well as people, that we look at and think, “What a waste of time.” But I would encourage you to change your thinking, and to look at things from Jesus’ perspective. Every person is valuable in the eyes of God. And every situation, pleasant or not, that God puts you in is an opportunity to share Christ with others. So, the disciples saw this time as a waste, but Jesus saw it as an opportunity to share grace and love with a group of people.
Second, The Disciples Wanted To Excuse Themselves From The Process.
Jesus just thrust them right into it, didn’t He? The disciples said, “YOU send the people away…” But Jesus answered them by saying, “YOU give them something to eat.” This word for “Compassion” is used in the New Testament only by or about Jesus. It suggests more than pity, it means giving actual help.
As a side note this morning, as you study this Gospel, there are certain scenes and certain passages that should challenge you and change you all at the same time. Well, this is one of those passages. As a disciple, we too see a lot of encounters and experiences as mere waste. We look for the planned moments, the “important” moments. But this passage has the power to change us. We are all still unfinished souls, but hopefully we can begin to see the chance encounter, the intrusion, the inconvenience, and the unexpected as more than trivial. In fact, it might very well be Divinely planned out by God. And it can certainly be Divinely used us, if we will just take the time and make the most of it.
To many, manure is just waste; but farmers know it is filled with untapped potential. For the disciples, they wanted to leave the situation and let Jesus take care of sending the people away. They were still looking at this event as an inconvenience to them. However, Jesus realized that this was the perfect opportunity to teach them that it is their responsibility to take care of these people.
When you look to your own life, I am sure that if you are anything like me, there are times and situations that arise, that you would rather not deal with. But Jesus is telling us that in those times, we need to still be sharing Christ with others. You see, that is OUR job.
And Finally This Morning, The Disciples Were More Than Willing To Miss This Opportunity In Exchange For One Of Comfort.
Now the disciples wanted these people to go away and let them eat and relax together with Jesus alone. They didn’t want to spend money, time, or resources on these intruders. Instead, they wanted to take this opportunity for comfort and relaxation. But Jesus saw things differently. He wanted these people to be satisfied by Him, and not be sent away. The disciples were not thinking of these people, they were only thinking of themselves when they asked Jesus to send them away.
But, Jesus knew that in retrospect they’d regret that decision later. They ministered in Christ’s power and the masses were satisfied. Maybe you are like me; I want to measure and plan my resources. But I learn here that instead of doing that, I am to determine God’s will and trust Him to meet human needs THROUGH me. Now realize this, I am not meeting the needs; God is! I am not a manufacturer of grace only a distributor.
The disciples did not have the power to meet the needs of all of those people. Only Jesus had that power, and they were simply carrying out the will of God. What a thrill it must have been to be part of this event! It changed these men forever. This is one of the few miracles that gets recorded in all 4 Gospels. It was that important.
You see, to many, manure is just waste; but farmers know it is filled with untapped potential. The disciples wanted alone time with Jesus. But Jesus knew that they needed to meet the needs and concerns of the people that were there. In our lives again, it is easier to let opportunities pass us by so that we are not disturbed or unconvinced. However, this passage challenges us to take those opportunities and turn them into ministry to others.
Now, as we begin to wrap things up this morning, manure by definition, is waste, but it is anything but that. It is simply what you make it. Opportunities like waste are only wasted if you do not let God’s grace make them into something new. To us, manure is disgusting and to be avoided. But, for those who farm, they understand that it has benefits. It requires a “re-think” and a fresh view of things though.
In March of 2007 the following snippet ran across the news wire. I won’t bore you with the entire news article, but there are a few paragraphs that will serve my purpose this morning.
The Associated Press in Detroit writes:
“Home-buyers of tomorrow could find themselves walking across floors made from manure…”
“That’s no cow pie-in-the-sky dream, according to researchers at Michigan State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture…”
“They say fiber from processed and sterilized cow manure could take the place of sawdust in fiberboard, which is used to make everything from furniture to flooring to store shelves…”
“And the resulting product smells just fine…”
“The researchers hope it could be part of the solution to disposing of the 1.5 trillion to 2 trillion pounds of manure produced annually in the United States…”
Now, as I have been saying, to many, manure is just waste; but farmers know it is filled with untapped potential.
I ran across this article as well. “Princeton, Minnesota — For a time last winter, Dennis Haubenschild’s dairy cows were earning him 40 cents a day from their milk and 30 cents a day from their electricity. Electricity from cows? That’s right.
You see, his Farm is the first Minnesota farm to produce “cow power.” The 760-cow family farm uses manure digestion to produce methane for electricity. The waste digester supplies enough power to run the entire farm, plus 78 average homes.
Farm digesters are attracting widespread interest. State experts say these manure treatment systems could bring important economic and environmental benefits to Minnesota agriculture. The technology lets farmers make a valuable new product — electricity — while reducing odor and creating high-quality fertilizer.”
Again, to many, manure is just waste; but farmers know it is filled with untapped potential. A physic website discloses another unique use for manure. “Iowa State University: Researchers convert farm waste to bio-oil.
Samy Sadaka reached into a garbage bag, picked up a mixture of cow manure and corn stalks, let it run through his fingers and invited a visitor to do the same... It wasn’t that bad he said.
That mix of manure and corn stalks had spent 27 days breaking down in a special drying process. The end result looked like brown yard mulch with lots of thin fibers. There wasn’t much smell. And it was dry to the touch. The researchers are working to take wastes from Iowa farms -- manure and corn stalks -- and turn them into a bio-oil that could be used for boiler fuel and perhaps transportation fuel. “The way I see manure, it’s not waste anymore,” Sadaka said. “It’s money in my pocket.””
So, to many, manure is just waste; but farmers know it is filled with untapped potential. In Matthew chapter 12 Jesus makes a passing comment that has always stuck with me. In Matthew 12:36-37 He says, “2”
Now, I suspect that if that is true of my words, it is true of my actions too! All the moments that come my way that I think are inconvenient, a waste of time, or reserved for me only, are really opportunities for grace, and opportunities to share God’s love with those I come in contact with.
So keep that in mind as you encounter times that are, to you, a waste at first glance. Try and find a way to make those moments, special opportunities to share Christ with others.
Let’s Pray! |
