The ‘Good Thing’ or the ‘God Thing’ – That is the Question?

The start of a new year is traditionally a time to reflect on the year ahead. To ask the question, what picture will we paint on this blank canvas of time that God has given us in the year of 2024? How does God want us to use the resources (paints) that he has given us, the range of gifts, abilities, time, material possessions, money? Will we continue as previously or do changes need to be made?

There again, why would we change anyway? Aren’t we doing good ministry already in our local church? As well as that, our leadership team and fellow congregational members seem to value our contribution. There seems to be no obvious reason to consider change. Or is there?

In reflecting on our answer to that question, it is important to remember that the ‘Good thing’, however much it might be valued by others, is not necessarily the ‘God thing’.

I am always reminded of this question when I read the experience of the Apostle Paul in Acts 16:6-10. It was on his 2nd missionary journey when he had arrived at the border between the Roman provinces of Mysia and Bithynia. His plan was to enter Bithynia to preach the Gospel to the pagan inhabitants of that province who up to that point had not received it. However, we are told that the ‘Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to’.

No doubt all Paul’s companions would have thought his plan for mission-Bithynia was a ‘Good thing’. Didn’t all those pagans desperately need to be saved? Who better to be the vehicle of the saving message of Jesus but the great Apostle himself? However, what everyone around him would have thought to be a ‘Good thing’ turned out not to be the ‘God thing’. In fact, God had another plan and blocked theirs.

Then God revealed his better plan. He gave Paul a vision of a ‘Man from Macedonia’ to communicate what the ‘God thing’ actually was, which was for Paul to give up his ‘good’ plan and cross the north Aegean Sea to the province of Macedonia. The ‘God thing’ was better than Paul’s ‘Good thing’ for a significant reason. It took the Gospel into Europe!  

Of course Paul’s willing obedience to change his plan to do the ‘God thing’ is in stark contrast to a man who definitely was not going to go along with the ’God thing’ for him. Namely Jonah (as in the Old Testament book of the same name), who’s clearly understood call from God was to go and preach to the pagan inhabitants of the great city of Ninevah. Rather than obedience however, Jonah’s response was the opposite. No way, he thought, that’s not my thing and promptly attempted to run away from God’s call. A lesson from Jonah is that the ‘God thing’ for us may well be the very last thing we want to do!

One example of a famous Christian who like Paul dropped the ‘Good thing’ to do the ‘God thing’ was Albert Schweitzer who was born in 1875 in Alsace, Germany (now in France) and had Doctorates in Philosophy and Theology as well as a stellar career in Europe as a musician, primarily as an organist. He was also an author of books on music and theology. A strong Christian, Schweitzer was also a preacher and lecturer in theology. Wasn’t this a ‘good thing’ to be doing, why would he give it up?

However, in 1905 Schweitzer renounced this ‘Good thing’ to do the ‘God thing’ for him, which was to train as a medical doctor. Then in 1913 he set out for the jungles of French Equatorial Africa where he built and, with the help of his wife, operated a hospital. It is still in operation.

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It is very evident that the last thing many church members want to do is to commit to some local missional activity which they might find very uncomfortable. However, it may well be the ‘God thing’ that he is calling them to rather than the ‘Good thing’ they are more comfortable with.

The question for us as we commence a new year, is what for us is the ‘God thing’ rather than the ‘Good thing’? We should not assume that they are necessarily the same!

So on the blank canvas of time we call 2024, what picture with God’s resources will we paint? The ‘Good thing’ we like doing and are comfortable with, or a picture of the (perhaps much more uncomfortable) ‘God thing’ for us. Could it even be that God is calling us to our own ‘mission-Ninevah’?