Monkeys, Crocodiles and Donkeys

Although there are many animals mentioned in the Bible, nobody ever told me just how involved they would be in ministry. In our Christian school, we once hosted trainers of chimpanzees. They were our guests and brought several chimps to interact with the students. Our family still has a photo with one of those primates. We have laughed often that we could not distinguish the chimp in the photo from our three boys.

We also had a member who worked for the guy who developed and manufactured Nautilus Weight Training equipment. The owner was rather eccentric who kept 12-ft crocodiles and rare poisonous snakes. We were invited to the facility to view these reptiles and were able to witness firsthand the feeding frenzy of crocodiles when live chickens were thrown into the pit. It was a major incredible experience.

On another occasion, our school hosted a Donkey Baseball fund raising event. The object of the game is the same as any baseball game, outscore the opposing team in the number of runs scored. Of course all the players are on donkey back running the bases and in the field on defense. It was quite an entertaining and frustrating experience. The donkeys, of course, were trained to be even more obstinate than normal, so they would run the wrong direction, stop and stand stubbornly, or just throw it's rider onto the ground.

However, I was least prepared for my own experience as a mule. Yes, you read that correctly, my own experience as a mule. My father-in-law, whom I served as Assistant Pastor, was an avid gardener. He was not content to cultivate an average plot of ground or grow average vegetables. Noooo, he was outstanding in his field. (Now that's funny if you know the joke.) He grew 100-lb watermelons and 20-lb cantaloupes. He was not satisfied with a small garden-size garden that could be managed with a tiller. He had a garden plot that required the services of a mule. Problem was, he did not have a mule to pull his bottom plow. He did have a plow, however, so he came up with the brilliant idea (and I use the term, brilliant, rather loosely), that he and I would take turns pulling the plow. Yes, you read that correctly also. He would take up the harness to the plow, I would take up the plow and he would pull the plow about 150 feet to the other end of the garden. We would then switch places and I would pull the plow back to the beginning point. I still vividly remember how conspicuos I felt to anyone driving by on the road in front of the church. I remember even then thinking that no one had ever told me this was what it meant to submit to spiritual leaders. I suppose I could have stood my ground and told my Father-In-Law I was not going to humiliate myself thus, but then he was also my Pastor and boss and I felt a certain duty to go along with his wishes. Besides, I was almost as proud of those watermelons as he was.

They just never told me in Bible College that I would ever perform the duties of a dumb animal. It does however, clarify I Corinthians 1:27, "...But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise..." I still wonder how God gets glory from that ministerial experience!