Are you immobile?

Last week I blogged about my dad's hip surgery. During his recovery process another truth from God's word sort of jumped out at me.

When he came home from the hospital we knew the first few days would be difficult. My brother and I decided that we would spend a few nights with he and my mom to help him get up and around when necessary. I took the first two nights and he took the next few. Saturday afternoon the physical therapist came by for his initial visit. He was a great guy who explained a lot about the actual surgical procedure and how our bodies react. In non-medical terms my dad's hip just shut down after the procedure. His brain detected trauma and did what God created it to do, shut down and protect the injured area of his body.

This process is good for the healing of his body but it is terrible for the mobility of his body. My dad could not walk, he had great difficulty getting on his feet, he had a very hard time getting from one room of the house to another. He could not sit or lie down comfortably. With the help of the therapist he is getting better but he still cannot do any yard work, he cannot hop in his car and drive to the store. He is temporarily unable to do what he knows he can and should do. As a result others are having to step in and do what he normally does.

As I thought about this a passage of scripture came to mind:

I Corinthians 12: 14-27 - 14 Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

We are all vital to the mobility of the church. Christ left us with the task of reaching the lost and caring for the church. This is something that the whole body has to be involved in. When one part of the Body of Christ is not working like it should the whole body is affected. Just like with my dad, when someone in the Body of Christ is immobile others have to step in and try to help.

My questions for you and me are what part of the body are we? Are we doing what we were designed and created to do or are we simply refusing to do anything and as a result impeding the mobility of Christ's body?

Christ gave us a challenge in Matthew:

Matthew 9:35-38  - 35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

It's time for the Body to start moving!