Sugar water or sand, how to really change the world

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matt. 7:24-27)

The story is told of how Steve Jobs, the president of the new and struggling Apple computer company, enticed John Scully, then president of Pepsi, to come to work for him.

“Do you want to spend the rest of your life peddling sugar-water?” Jobs asked Scully. “Or would you like to come and help change the world?”

Scully came to Apple and though they built a computer empire, it ultimately betrayed both of them and they were ousted from the corporation, though Jobs eventually returned. They gave their lives to a cause that may not have been built on sugar-water, was literally built on sand.

Sand—the silicon chips that power the computers that run more and more of our lives—that’s all they are. And if we don’t have a reason for using them that transcends the power in that box, our lives are built on nothing but crumbling sand.

But we do have a different reason for doing what we do with computers. We’re doing our work, our church communications, for the kingdom of God. We may not have the most up-to-date equipment, we may not have the time to learn all the programs we should, we may feel like what we produce is never as good as it could be—but we do it for glorious reasons. Our structure may be a bit rickety at times, but the foundation is solid.

Because of the communications you create, lonely people will feel welcome in church when they see the cheerful message and graphics in your bulletin; hungry folks will be fed because your brochure explained a food drive well; birthdays will be remembered and people will feel they count for something because you carefully entered the names into data bases and printed out calendars. And sometimes, whether in a brochure, or newsletter, or web page, you’ll clearly communicate the message of the gospel and the destiny of another soul will be changed for eternity.

Don’t be afraid to work hard, to be excited and passionate about your work—you aren’t working for sugar-water or sand, but for a kingdom that can never be shaken.

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This is an excerpt from Yvon Prehn's book, Devotions for Church Communicators, available as an ebook, or in print.