Moving On

No matter how great or evil a king was, they were always replaced.

1 Kings 22.29-53

Reference:  v.40 Ahab rested with his fathers.  And Ahaziah his son succeeded him as king. (NIV Bible)

Explore:  My boss and I both came from the same church before working for Northern Community Church of Christ.  While he left this church eight years ealier than I did, we still have a common history.  When he left he jokingly boasted that it took three people to replace him, as his job was distributed to three other ministers.  I was one of the people who took up a third of his job description.  Now that we are working together again and he is now my boss I took great delight in slipping into conversation that, since I have left they have appointed five different people to fulfill my job description!
While it's fun to joke about previous jobs it is humbling to know that we are always replaceable.  I was recently talking to a friend who is also in ministry.  He was struggling with a decision the church had made and was wondering whether he should leave.  I could tell that he was personally hurt by the decision.  The reality was, however, that if he was to leave based on this decision, the church would find another minister to replace him but he would still be left with the hurt and disappointment to work through.  If he had the capacity it was going to be healthier for him to work through those emotions whilst still being affirmed and needed in his current role.

Application:  I'm not meaning to be harsh and please don't hear me say that we can not make lasting contributions to a place of employment.  It is just realistic, however, to understand that people need to move on to commit to a new person, and they will. 
No matter how great or evil a king was, they were always replaced.  Throughout the whole book of Kings we have read about one king replacing another.  Past history and our own mortality tells us that we too will be replaced.  This does not mean that we don't even bother in the first place!  Our replaceable-ness calls us to truly do our best in the time we are present.  

Prayer:  Lord, we go through many seasons in our lives.  We arrive and leave many times.  May we have the integrity to do our best in each situation but the humility to know that we are replaceable.  Amen.

Should we set up our positions so that we are easily replaceable?

1 Kings