Bishop Ricardo Pereira Diaz of the Methodist Church of Cuba was our special guest at Annual Conference He told us this story.
One of his pastors was on his way from one poor, rural church to another church. He was riding his donkey on a lonely road at night. The moon was full and after a while, he came upon a cow. The preacher sensed God telling him, “Go preach to the cow.”
“No, Lord, I can’t preach to a cow.” he said.
But he heard God speaking; “Go preach to the cow.” The pastor looked around and saw he was alone. So he got down off his donkey and said, “Cow, you must repent! You must stop sinning and give your life to Jesus.” The cow ignored him and continued to graze.
“Oh well,” said the pastor, “at least no one saw me.” He got back on his donkey and continued down the road.
The next day, he stood before the congregation in the church to which he was traveling the night before. A man stood up in the back of the church, pointed a finger at him and said, “You’re the man who preached to the cow!” The preacher was shocked to have been discovered.
The man went on, “I was a thief. I was hiding behind the cow. I was there to steal that cow. I heard what you said to the cow, and I decided to stop stealing and to give my heart to Jesus. So here I am.”
I love that story. It reminds me that sermon preparation has a lot more to do with being faithful to the Gospel than it does with getting inside the heads of the congregation. How, after all, do you make the gospel relevant to a cow? Telling the story is my responsibility, hearing the story is up to the congregation and the Holy Spirit. You never know who is really listening or what God wants them to hear. Any Children’s Church will convince you of that.
Too often we assume that a person isn’t interested in our sharing the Good News. Yet if God wants us to speak up, its a sin to stay silent. God knows what the person is ready to hear and will give you the words to say. But we tell ourselves that a person really isn’t interested in our church, or that they will be offended if we talk religion or share our faith experiences. So we keep silent, convincing ourselves that we have been “sensitive.”
Our mission as Christians is to make disciples for Jesus Christ. If Jesus had been more “sensitive,” there would not have been a Calvary. Sure, some people really were offended, but they weren’t the only listeners. Others understood and accepted his message. At some point, they were bold enough to pass it on. Finally, someone passed it on to you. Now its your turn. Yes, to the person least likely to receive it. Yes, to the person who is a stranger. Yes, to the person you are most likely to offend, or who has offended you. It may seem like utter nonsense, but even if God tells you to preach to a cow…who knows?
Rev. Dennis P. Levin