Many of our ministries in the Northwest can recall the days of their zenith, when, as a congregation or school, they had grown to noble height and fullness of strength relative to where they are now. In Ezekiel 17, the Lord gives Ezekiel a parable to tell of how He, The Lord, will take a sprig from the top of what was a mighty tree, and plant it, and that sprig will grow into a noble tree of salvation. The Lord’s parable through Ezekiel brings encouragement to any ministry caught in the trap of nostalgia.
Check out this month’s Mission Minutes and find encouragement from our God who, through Jesus, does amazing things with what He plucks from the tops of trees.
—————————————EPISODE NOTES AND QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER—————————————
Talk About It:
Understanding the Message
1. In Ezekiel 17, God promises to take a tender sprig from a great cedar and plant it on the mountains of Israel. How does that sprig point us to Jesus?
Reflection
1. What emotions might members of St. Paul’s have experienced when their elementary school closed?
2. What part of the story at St. Paul gave you the most hope?
3. How does Ezekiel 17:24 — “I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do it” — speak to a congregation that feels like it is in decline?
Application
1. Vitality in ministry is not measured by size compared to what it used to be, but by engagement in the mission of the Messiah. How would that shift in thinking change your congregation?
2. Zacchaeus was up in the tree because those who followed Christ had blocked him out. Who might be “up in a tree” in your community, unable to get a glimpse of Jesus?
3. In what ways can a congregation identify the “sprig” that remains — and trust God to grow something new from it?
4. How does the mission of Jesus in Luke 19:10 define what faithful ministry looks like today?
Personal Reflection Prompts
1. Where in your own life have you seen God grow something significant from something that seemed very small?
2. Is there something you or your congregation may be holding onto from the past that God is calling you to replant in a new way?
3. How does knowing that Jesus actively sought out Zacchaeus change the way you think about reaching people who feel far from the church?
Put It Into Action:
1. Pray for a congregation in our District that is navigating the loss of a ministry or is in a season of decline.
2. Encourage a leader who is faithfully tending a small, replanted work — a new outreach, a preschool, a ministry to families.
3. Share this story with someone who needs a reminder that God makes the dry tree flourish.