The Big Payoff
I got to see that fruit this past week at our Mexico National Assembly, where we ordained four new pastors. One of those pastors was my very first student, Guillermo Tepal, who graduated from the Bible School in 2004, the year after we first arrived in Mexico. Guillermo married right out of Bible School and began pastoring that same year, over five years ago. He has been a successful pastor and they now have two little boys. Way to go, Guillermo!
This is the principle of the harvest and of multiplication. As Guillermo ministers and reaches people for Christ in his church, he who is the fruit of my labor begins bearing even more fruit. By pouring myself into Guillermo and other students like him, I am reaching untold 1000’s of Mexican people for Christ. Just one student who becomes a pastor is capable of returning 30, 50 or even 100 fold (see the parable of the sower in Matt. 13:1-23). What a great investment!
I had so much fun at Assembly, pointing out my former students to our visiting dignitaries. “That’s Sarai, she’s now pastoring the main church in Ciudad Valles and also sits on the National Board as treasurer.” “This is Marco, now pastoring and teaching in the extension.” “Oh, there’s Pablo and Rebecca who pastor three churches between them, and Rebecca’s the assistant director of the Oaxaca extension.” “And there’s America Gutierrez, pastor and director of the Valles extension.” And so it went the whole time we were there. How rewarding it is to see my former students not only pastoring, but training even more pastors!
That’s just a part of the Big Payoff. Sometimes you get to see some of it here and now. But the biggest payoff of all awaits all of us in Heaven when we’ll get to see the results spanning generations of every little offering, every sacrifice, every investment of time and energy, every word spoken in love, and every prayer offered in faith. It’s worth it!
