The Power, The Blessings, & Benefits of Just Showing Up
Introduction
Baseball has been one of the favorite sports of Americans.
Cal Ripkin, Jr. was a famous baseball player. He wrote a book titled "Just Show Up." In the book her wrote:
Everyone has a 2,131. Ripkin played for the same baseball team--the Baltimore Orioles--for his entire baseball career. He eventually broke Lou Gehrig's record for the most consecutive games with a 2,231 game streak. He went on to play 2,632 games.
Ripkin went on to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. He showed up to game after game. When his team was winning, when it was losing, when he was angry, when all was well--when it wasn't he just showed up.
He says everyone has a 2,131 of their own--just showing up. We have personal streaks as parents, in business, as friends, in our ministries. It's our job to show up. Every day, every week, every year there is someone counting on us. When you just keep showing up you may not break a record, but you stand out because people can count on you.
Just show up.
One man in Scripture learned the power, the blessing, and the benefits of just showing up. His is a name that we rarely hear preached about, but it is contained in:
Text:
Acts 1:21-26
21 “Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.”
23 And they proposed two: Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. 24 And they prayed and said, “You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two You have chosen 25 to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.” 26 And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
In Revelation 21, John sees a vision of the Holy City, New Jerusalem. He says that there is a wall surrounding the City which had 12 foundations. In the foundations of the walls of the New Jerusalem are the "names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb." The Eternal City has Matthias's name etched into the foundations of its walls because Matthias showed up.
The Power, The Blessings, and the Benefit of Just Showing Up
After His resurrection, the Lord Jesus spent 40 days with the apostles opening their understanding and preparing them to continue His work in His absence (Acts 1:3-4). He opened their understanding in the Scriptures so that they could unfold the eternal plan of God from the Law and the Prophets to us (Luke 24:27). He instructed them to go and wait in Jerusalem until they had received the Holy Spirit that would empower them to be His witnesses in all the world beginning at Jerusalem (Acts 1:8). He then ascended into heaven and it was time for them to wait.
They waited for 10 days, not know what to expect, but in obedience they waited. Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas were there praying and waiting. Bartholomew, and Matthew were there. James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes were there. Praying and waiting. Judas the brother of James was there. Mary the mother of Jesus and his brothers were there, praying and waiting. They along with others who came to about 120 people in all (Acts 1:13-14).
Women and men who showed up in Jerusalem and waited for the promise of the Father would not be disappointed. We know that when the Jewish feast day of Pentecost arrived they were all in one mind and in one accord (they were unified in one place). God wants to do many great things among the people of this church, but He is waiting for you to be unified and when you are He is going to send a great work of His Spirit.
On the birthday of the church in Acts 2 it says after they showed up together and worshipped and waited together: "Suddenly a sound came from heaven. It was like a strong wind blowing. It filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw something that looked like fire in the shape of tongues. The flames separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit. They began to speak in languages they had not known before. The Spirit gave them the ability to do this." (Acts 2:1-4 NIrV)
They were not disappointed that they showed up! When you show up where Jesus tells you to show up and work in unity with your sisters and brothers God will fulfill His promises!
A prayer that we would all do well to learn is "God show me what you are doing, where you are doing it, and how I can participate." And once he shows us--JUST SHOW UP. God is working in this church. Don't miss it by being absent from where you should be. The devil knows that God wants to work here and so the devil has been fighting you to try t stop you from receiving the Promises God has for you. The devil tries to keep you from showing up!
There is power in showing up. There is power in being at the right place at the right time.
Sometimes fear keeps us from showing up. Sometimes it takes courage to show up. I wonder if Matthias had moments after witnessing the baptism of the Lord Jesus when he was discouraged? I wonder if there were moments when he watched as Jesus seemed to look over him and pick 12 others who were a part of his closest followers and thought, "why am I here?" What was it like when Judas was picked because of his greater accounting abilities?
Nevertheless, Matthias kept showing up. He did not let jealousy or envy keep him from showing up. He was not angry at Jesus because Jesus did not do it the way that he thought Jesus should do it. He just kept showing up. He had a true servant's heart! He probably did not know how important he was to God's plan, but he showed up anyway. But, he was faithful!
It takes courage to be faithful.
“The willingness to show up changes us, It makes us a little braver each time.”? Brené Brown
There is something about showing up that gives you the ability to speak up when the time comes.
Speaking Points:
1. You Are More Important to God's Plan Than You Will Ever Realize
The Lord Jesus had a bigger group of disciples than we often realize. Usually, because they do not speak or act we ignore everyone except the 12 apostles.
Even among the 12 apostles we usually only read about Peter, James, and John and maybe "Doubting Thomas."
The list of others who followed Jesus include:
The Seventy (Luke 10:1-24)
Barsabas Joseph (Acts 1:23)
James, the Lord's brother (Galatians 1:19)
Joanna (the wife of Chuza, Herod's servant) (Luke 8:3; 24:10)
Mary and Martha of Bethany (John 11)
The other Marys (Luke 24:10)
Mary Magdalene (Luke 24:10)
Salome (Mark 15:40)
Matthias (Acts 1:26)
They're all there, women and men who faithfully walked with Jesus during His earthly ministry. Why would the Lord include these in the text of Scripture?
Maybe to say that you matter. It matters when you show up. It matters when you are not there. You may not have a speaking part, but there are some things that will put you in God's "hall of fame" that others may not immediately recognize.
Matthias may not have imagined that he would ever be a part of the plan of God in a greater measure. But, because he was faithful in what may have seemed to be the smallest thing, when the time came he was placed in a different role.
God looks at things differently than we do. He values things differently than we do.
When God chose David. It was not David's physical stature (though we know nothing about his stature). It wasn't his ability to fight or lead that God looked at first. God was looking for someone who would be faithful in the long run of life, and He said, "I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do" (1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22) David will SHOW UP!
He will have his struggles and his failures but he will show up!
You are important to God's plan. There are things you can do that no one else can do. There are lessons that you will learn showing up that you will not learn any other way. Cal Ripkin writes:
I learned from winning the World Series, but I learned as much, if not more, from a long, painful losing season. I learned when to get mad at umpires and when not to. I learned from teammates and opponents who were role models and sometimes from guys who taught me what not to do.
But you can't learn anything if you aren't there. JUST SHOW UP!
God values showing up. The importance of the church assembling together is emphasized by the writer of the book of Hebrews 10:22-25 NLT:
22 let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. 24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.
You don't always have to win. Just be there. And you will win in the end.
The lyrics to Karen Druker's song Just Show Up ring true:
Another one of those mornin's when I'm trying to talk myself out of bed. All my good intentions are rollin' around in my head. And I say: “Get it in gear, honey, I don't wanna hear it. Get out the door, put your feet on the floor.” Chorus: Just show up. Take your time. You don't always have to be the first one in line. Show up, slow down, let it be easy. Just show up. Just show up. It might be as simple as just getting' out of the way. A sweet invitation to be willing every day. Maybe I don't need to push so hard. One breath at a time, straight from the heart. Chorus You never know what can happen. You never know what might be. If I make room for a miracle to show up in me.
2. Your Impact is Greater Than You Can Imagine
Working in the elevator industry for 15 years I was a helper, an apprentice, and a journeyman. I remember all of those roles. It was not until I ran my own jobs that I realized the impact of having help that will show up. I began to understand the power of showing up. There were tasks that I could do alone, but other tasks that were too dangerous to do alone, or that it was beyond my physical capabilities to do alone. I valued helpers who were highly skilled and who caught on quickly. But more than that I learned to value those who would show up. Day after day, week after week.
Cal Ripkin's baseball attendance record is a lesson to us, but so are the records of others.
Senator Susan Collins cast her 7,000 vote last year. She has never missed a roll call vote, ever. She has cast her vote with a broken ankle. Once she was already on an airplane runway in a jet waiting for takeoff when the Senate schedule was changed. She got off the plane. She said that she was elected to do a job and she has done it. There is value in showing up.
The news show 60 Minutes has aired from 1968 six weeks before Richard Nixon won the election to today.
Saturday Night Live has made people laugh since 1975.
The singer Bob Dylan has been on a tour called the Never Ending Tour since 1988. He averages 90 concerts a year. He is nearing 80 years old. "When asked why he played so many shows every year, he said, "These days, people are lucky to have a job. Any job. So critics might be uncomfortable with my working so much. Anybody with a trade can work as long as they want. A carpenter, an electrician. They don't necessarily need to retire."
Singer Billy Joel signed a contract in January 2014 to play Madison Square Garden once a month for as long as his shows sold out. As of January 2019, he's played almost sixty consecutive full houses at the Garden. When he was asked why he does it, Joel said, "I'm not doing it to break records. . .I'm doing it because that's what I do."
When you do your job you stand out.
Matthias stood out to the point that when it came time to replace Judas he was picked.
Some people may not understand what you are doing. Ripkin tells about the way Joe Morgan, the great Cincinnati Reds second baseman was angry at him for a long time. He was critical of Ripkin's attendance streak. . .
Until Ripkin was inducted into the hall of fame. He said:
Joe came up to me and said, "I owe you an apology." He told me that when I was in the midst of the streak, he was mad at me, kind of disappointed. It was because when I first came up in the majors, Frank Robinson had said to Joe, "Look at Ripkin--he's going to be the best that's ever played." Joe thought that meant that I'd hit a lot of home runs and make flashy plays, not that I'd play consistently day after day. So Joe saw the streak as something that took away from my chance to do the "big stuff." But, now Joe was admitting he'd been wrong. I said, "Joe, I played the game because each day there's a challenge to try to win the game." I looked at it the way my dad looked at it, and that's my job today.
My dad said, "You can't play tomorrow's game till it gets here. you can't replay yesterday's game. But this is today's challenge, and you should meet the challenge of today as best you can.
But, a streak is not an end in itself.
It takes courage to show up and face today. The lad with the five loaves and two fish was there. He was available. God will work with what is available!
He said Moses was found faithful (Numbers 12:7; Hebrews 3:5). Moses showed up...
3. God May Have Something In Store For You That You Will Miss If you Don't Show Up
Ripkin tells the story of another baseball player named Wally Pip. Wally Pip was a very fine baseball player. He had two years leading home runs in the American League for the Yankees. In 1925, Pip got a headache and sat out a game. His place on first base was taken by a guy named Lou Gehrig. And baseball, not to mention Wally Pipp, was never the same. Lou Gehrig went on to be a very great baseball player because Wally Pipp didn't show up.
Ripkin says that his dad would often use the story of Pipp as a motivator. When Ripkin was tired from a road trip--at three or four or five in the morning--he would feel too tired to play the next morning, but the thought that someone might show up and take his place motivated him to go on. He did not want to be a Wally Pipp.
Sometimes bad streaks are good.
The Oriels baseball team went on a losing streak in 1988. It lasted 21 games. What could possibly be good about losing that many games in a row? Well, adversity either destroys people and teams and families and churches or it brings them together. In 1988 the entire sports world was following the Oriels games. They were 0-18. They were characteristic losers. But it caused their team to bond. to grow closer together. They had a great season the following year.
Sometimes God allows us to lose over and over again and during that time we can either quit the team or grow closer together.
Show up! This season will pass and it might just make things better than they were. This church is at the beginning of something great. And those who work and strive from the very beginning e going to taste of God's blessings in the future together. We serve a God who opens blind eyes and turns shepherd's staffs into serpents! He brings light out of darkness and life out of death!
For those who show up!
Conclusion and exhortation
I want to encourage you this afternoon to make a commitment to showing up. I want to pray with you that God will give you the grace to show up in ways that you never have before in all of your relationships.
