Russ Carlson,
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology,
University of Georgia
[Nov 29, 2009] —
Luke 19: 17 “And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.’”
I am quite sure that I do not want to have authority (or responsibility) over ten cities! However, I do know that more than anything I want to hear the Lord say to me, “Well done, good servant.”
Three Things
It is very encouraging to know that I can please the Lord by being faithful in – little things. As a faculty member at the University of Georgia and part of our Christian Faculty Forum (CFF), I’ve become aware of a number of things to do for the Lord over the years. Here are three that I have done:
- I identify myself as a Christian to my students.
- I have written my personal story. This has been placed on the Christian Faculty Fellowship website (www.uga.edu/cff) as well as on my own website.
- I’ve also given permission for my name to be included in the ads sponsored by our CFF in the University newspaper (The Red & Black) which identify Christian faculty members and encourage students to consider the claims of Christ.
I’ve read a number of my colleague’s personal stories and they are very compelling. Frankly, I never considered my personal story to be very compelling. In fact, it seemed a bit dull to me and I didn’t think that placing it on my website would matter very much. Nevertheless, as the passage from Luke says, God instructed me to be faithful in very little so I did it, and have been encouraged by the responses. The following is an email I received last year in response to the newspaper ad:
“Dr. Carlson,
“I read your profile and it EXACTLY matched what my life has been like so far. I am going through the same experiences with doubts about God. There are so many questions that I can’t answer and so many people say that they have proof that God doesn’t exist.
“Plus, I am currently taking a Religion class and that has caused me to doubt very seriously as well. I am so worried and confused. I was wondering if you could answer some questions since you went through the same things that I am going through now?
Thanks so much for posting your testimony online, Morgan”
I replied to her email and arranged to talk with her in person. Morgan was searching for answers. At this point, my wife, Cheryl, and I were able to help. We began to meet with Morgan each week to go through C.S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity and have had some very good discussions. Later, even though she had prayed as a child, she wanted to be sure of her commitment to Christ, so she recommitted her life to Jesus Christ.
She Related To My Story
Morgan was not a student in my class, but found the personal story that related to her life. She read the CFF advertisement in the student newspaper (The Red & Black), saw my name among nearly 100 others, and began reading the personal stories.
I was amazed that these little things I had agreed to do had this much impact in the life of one student. It really brought home to me the important lesson from the Lord’s words that “being faithful in the very little” allowed Him to speak to Morgan’s heart; a much, much bigger thing! As this year ends and 2010 arrives, I will be looking for more “little things” that I can do for the Lord.
© 2009 Russ Carlson