I have been surprised and even occasionally shocked to hear the reasons some give for not attending the annual meeting of the Baptist General Association of Virginia. Some cite family responsibilities that tether them to home as the reason they cannot attend. To be sure, each family has its unique needs and I can understand that sometimes demands require our presence.
Others offer their lack of time — as though the Almighty had decreed that some of us were given fewer hours in a day than others. I confess to having less patience with this excuse.
But the excuse that sets my teeth on edge is the suspicion some voice that attending the annual meeting seems to be a waste of time. Things are seldom as simple as they seem.
Martin Luther could hardly have imagined, when he threw out the bones and leftovers from the fat goose the family had devoured for supper, that five centuries later archaeologists would be digging through his trash. Still less could he have foreseen that on the basis of what they found they would draw conclusions about his life.
But two weeks ago a five-year project ended in which Luther's childhood home as well as the former monastery where he lived with Catherine von Bora, his wife and a former nun, and their six children were excavated.
Knowing that the 330-pound man's ego was often as inflated as his girth, I suspect that he would be gratified to know that his garbage was considered important enough to be sifted through centuries later.
And what did they find? The usual fruits of a dig of this kind. Thousands of pieces of broken glass and pottery, animal bones indicating the family's preference for certain dishes and various kinds of toys and lost marbles. I will resist the temptation to comment about Luther losing his marbles. But these are not just shards. These are Luther's shards! Commonplace, yes. Broken, admittedly. But they are made significant because of who used them.
Of greater interest, but hardly surprising considering that Luther wrote about 1,800 pages a year, were the remains of goose quill pens and writing sets. That these were actually used by the great reformer is hardly disputable and make them of great value. One man's trash is another man's treasure, I guess.
They discovered tacks. Scientists cannot firmly conclude, of course, that Luther actually used tacks rather than nails
attach his 95 theses to the Wittenburg Cathedral door. But even common tacks cause us to remember the courage and defiance of that act.
Trained archaeologists expect the unexpected. And they were not disappointed. Lost among the trash during Martin and Catherine's lifetimes was a golden wedding ring. Now, a find like this is enough to cause the most dust-covered archaeologist to shudder with excitement.
Add to this the stash of 250 silver coins they discovered and you have unanticipated treasure discovered among the commonplace.
At this point, I return to the BGAV. Did you think I had forgotten? I will be the first to admit that some of the reports and business conducted at the BGAV do not cause me to tingle with excitement. For verification, I would point to my own written report. I almost fell asleep while writing it.
But Baptist meeting goers should be experienced enough to know that somewhere amid the commonplace true treasures will be uncovered. The Holy Spirit will create those moments we recognize as holy and we shudder with excitement at what we have discovered.
We may also draw a parallel at another point. In Luther's case, it is the significance of the person himself that makes the common object so important. Just so, if reports of Kingdom Advance seem commonplace and unexciting, we must reflect on the kingdom they report and who is the King of the kingdom. Dusty though they may sometimes be, they are made noteworthy because in some way each contributes insight to the overall work of Christ.
If we think that Eddie Stratton is only talking about money, we have missed the kingdom perspective. And if we assume that John Upton addresses only what Virginia Baptists are doing, we have missed the whole point — that God is in Christ reconciling the world to himself, and Christ is in us accomplishing this work. The reports are significant not in and of themselves perhaps, but because they report on some aspect of Christ's work they are made sacred.
And, at times unexpectedly, amid the commonplace, we will be stunned by the glitter of gold and our spirits shout a silent “Hallelujah” in praise to God.