Making the Final Four!

March Madness is finally here—the month that makes college basketball “must see TV!” (Go Bears!) There is quite the build up to this magical time. Three hundred (plus) teams hope their seasons end with a place among the top sixty-eight in the premiere NCAA tournament. For all basketball programs, “the post season” is where it is at; and the glitter of the annual March playoffs are where glory is sought and sometimes found.

The attraction of March is so alluring that winning a lot of games, or even winning one’s own conference championship pales in comparison. All prior success is dismissed if your team is not invited to “the Big Dance.” For those seeking elite status, phrases like “making the tournament,” “Sweet Sixteen,” “Elite Eight,” “Final Four,” and “playing in the Championship game” all describe stations on the way to success. Get there and you are “something” or “somebody.” Fail to make the tourney, and you are a “struggling program.”

During the brief social phase of my college career, I agreed to be interviewed by a pledge from a friend’s sorority. The pledge was eager to please her “big sister” and scheduled a meeting in the student union building right away. She sounded pleasant and determined on the phone. On the day of our interview I arrived early and found a seat with a view of the foyer’s three entrances and soon saw a harried young woman with a pledge notebook scanning the faces of all of us seated there. After a few false starts, she finally approached me and asked, “Excuse me, are you somebody?”

I couldn’t suppress a chuckle and the thought crossed my mind that whether I was “somebody” or not was immaterial; she still had to interview me. I could see the gears whirling in her head as she assessed the person before her. Her expression changed within a few seconds as my name fell off her networking list. Perhaps it was the t-shirt, jeans, or tattered Rod Lavers-- or the mention of my Volkswagen Beetle that did it; this was a private school after all. Seeing the earnestness of her question, though, prompted me to simply identify myself and dispense with my wit and sarcasm. We had a brief but pleasant few minutes and then she was off to her next victim.

Her question hung in the air, however. “Am I somebody?” By what measure(s) do I determine my “somebody-ness?” How do I get there?

A few years earlier, in 1978, I was riding the train to Chicago in early June. I was on my way to Wheaton and the offices of Slavic Gospel Association for my orientation before joining their Summer Youth Training in Europe (SYTE) mission program. At breakfast, I was directed to a table occupied by an older gentleman who was also travelling alone. He prayed before eating and that gesture sparked a conversation that continued throughout the day. At one point, he asked me what I wanted to do with my life. I told him that I wanted to become a “great man of God” (not in the sense of worldly acclaim, but in the Dwight Moody sense); I wanted to be used greatly by God. He understood what I was trying to say and simply replied, “Well, Mark, great men of God rarely began as great men; they began with simple, humble obedience. God decides whom He will raise up . . .” That counsel sounded okay to me, I just hoped that God would be quick about it; I wanted to make a difference in the world and was ready to get started.

As it would turn out, Dwight and I are rarely brought up in the same conversations; at least I’ve never heard anyone ever making the comparison, unless, of course they wanted to insult Dwight Moody.

But God has raised up many faithful men over the years. I’ve read scores of biographies: Hudson Taylor, William Carey, Billy Graham, Bill Bright, Dawson Trotman, and Jim Elliot come to mind—just to name a few. Of course, the stories of Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, David, and Daniel are also very compelling as well as instructive. Take Joshua for example:

The LORD said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. Joshua 3:7 ESV

God still calls. He still raises and exalts. But for what purpose did God exalt Joshua and Moses? Why did the God of the universe need to raise up men like Moses and Joshua? The short answer is “because He wanted to.” God raised them up (exalted them) for His own reasons. In other words, it served God's purposes—whatever they might be-- to exalt these two men. It served God's purposes to exalt David and Daniel, too. But, it also served God's purposes to call prophets like Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Hosea (and many others) to roles that made them the objects of scorn and ridicule. In effect, God exalts and abases—for His purposes.

Within many evangelical denominations we measure a servant’s worth by their position within the hierarchy or the size of their congregation. Though it may be true that men and women with extraordinary gifts find additional opportunities and larger and larger audiences, it does not follow that servants in smaller venues are lesser parts of the kingdom. God exalts and abases.

To become comfortable with this truth requires a different perspective, or perhaps a different axis on the chart. The true measure of value in the kingdom of heaven is faithful obedience. Are we faithful to what God has called us to do? Are we faithful in following His commands? Are we faithful to hear His voice and obey? Are we faithful, come large crowds or small? The exaltation of Jesus was not earthly acclaim, faithful crowds, or the admiration of the masses, but the cross.

God exalts and abases—as it serves His purposes. Salvation, deliverance, atonement, peace, healing, regeneration and abundant life are not possible without the cross. If Jesus’ life was destined for the cross, perhaps we need to re-consider what “success” will look like in our own lives. If I may, I might suggest that we measure our faithfulness and leave the venues and destinations to God.