Tag: responsiblity

Who’s Gonna Feed Them Hogs?

Brent Pollard

On a recent drive home, Tom T. Hall’s “Who’s Gonna Feed Them Hogs” played on the radio. The song’s story of a hog farmer whose life is unexpectedly imperiled strikes a chord with people of faith, who can identify at least three salient points from Scripture in its lyrics. The old man decides that because his pens are full of hogs needing tending, he cannot die, and he makes a remarkable recovery.

1. Feed the Hogs: Responsibility as Biblical Stewardship (Proverbs 27.23)

First, the song touches on responsibility. Someone has to feed all those hogs. The farmer’s concern is not inherently wrong. He has 400 hogs that require tending. As good stewards of what God has entrusted to us, we see that a righteous man cares for his animals (Proverbs 12.10a). Solomon advises: “Know well the condition of your flocks, and pay attention to your herds” (Proverbs 27.23). Biblical faith is not an excuse for irresponsibility. We have families to provide for, work to perform, congregations to serve, and promises to keep. In this, Tom T. Hall’s farmer deserves commendation. He cares about what has been entrusted to him.

2. Tomorrow’s Plans Are Written in Pencil (James 4.13-17)

However, the farmer’s awareness of his mortality should also have led him to reflect on the truth James points out in the fourth chapter of his epistle (vv. 13-17). Whereas the farmer had expected a routine day of chores, he is unexpectedly hospitalized and facing death. The merchants in James 4 say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit” (13). James replies: “…you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow” (14). The Parable of the Rich Fool (Luke 12.16-21) dovetails nicely with this thought.

Full Barns and Full Pens: The Parable of the Rich Fool (Luke 12.16-21)

The rich fool had barns full of crops. In fact, he had to build more barns to house his surplus. The hog farmer of Hall’s song had pens full of 400 hogs. Death says to both of them, in effect: “What happens to all of this if tonight is your last night?” However, a key difference remains. The rich fool trusted his possessions. As such, he showed where he invested his heart (Luke 12.34). Jesus warns that only hearts invested in heaven have eternal security (Matthew 6.19-21). In contrast, the hog farmer was worried about responsibilities. Yet both confront the same fact: Tomorrow’s plans are always written in pencil.

3. The Delusion of Being Indispensable (Matthew 6.25-34; Psalm 127.1-2)

Ultimately, we arrive at our strongest application for this illustration. The farmer’s anxiety arose from his delusion that he was indispensable. He asks: “If I’m not there, who’s gonna feed them hogs?” Metaphorically speaking, we all have our hogs. Who will take care of my family? Who will teach my class? Who’s going to do this job? Who will carry out this church program? Who will solve this problem if I don’t? This brings us to Matthew 6.25-34 and Psalm 127.1-2. Don’t give in to anxiety and let God build the house.

When Stewardship Mutates Into Anxiety

I am confident in making this point, having already stressed responsibility. We should work diligently. But stewardship can mutate into anxiety, and we can begin to behave as though everything depends on us. “God has given me something to do” becomes “Nothing can function without me.” The first is stewardship, and the second is a burden God never gave. That gives us a memorable progression and our three points.

  • Feed the hogs.
  • Don’t presume you will be here to feed them tomorrow.
  • Trust God when it’s time for someone else to feed them.

What Falls Under These Three Points

Other issues lurk around the periphery—worry, priorities, life’s brevity, wealth, legacy, even preparing others to assume our responsibilities (see 2 Timothy 2.2). However, these all fall beneath the umbrella of the three areas we have already discussed, not creating new categories.

The Hogs Will Get Fed Without Us

The song’s humor makes the third point especially effective. The old hog farmer essentially tells death, “You’ll have to come back for me later because I have 400 hogs depending on me.” And sooner or later, everyone must learn that the hogs will get fed without us. That, too, is God’s providence. It’s not an argument that our lives don’t matter, far from it. It is the argument that God remains God even when our shift is finally over.

Naming Your Own Hogs

So, what are your hogs? Name them honestly, then tend to them faithfully. Work like the task matters, since it does. Yet hold it loosely enough to lay it down when the time comes, trusting that the God who entrusted you with the work will not abandon it when you are gone. God requires faithfulness in our shift, not permanence in it.

“I Praise, I Participate, I Proclaim”

Neal Pollard

Yesterday afternoon, the Bear Valley eldership stood before us one by one to talk about their priorities both for themselves and for us. They distilled them into five simple words that describe five profound concepts: (1) Worship, (2) Communication, (3) Fellowship, (4) Accountability, and (5) Leadership. They told us that as the religious world is growing more homogenous in their worship style (a la community church model; rock concert-ish), distinctive New Testament worship has a chance to stand out even more. Yet, we need to always be improving our efforts in leadership and participation. They emphasized that communicating news, ideas, and needs is a process that will always need work and priority. No church ever arrives in this regard. They spoke of the importance of building a closer church family, knowing each other through age-related opportunities and entire congregation opportunities. This happens when we’re all together, in the classroom, and away from the building. They stressed the importance of holding one another accountable, for faithfulness, commitment, and support. Otherwise, there is no way to move from ideas to action. They told us that all of us exert leadership in some area. There is formalized leadership positions, as outlined in the New Testament (elders, deacons, preachers, teachers). But, inasmuch as we all have a sphere of influence (cf. Mat. 5:14-16), God expects us to lead. Throughout their entire presentation, they were specific about strategies aimed at helping us be successful. I appreciated the great challenge this was for us to work and grow. There were so many quotable sayings from their collective lesson, but the one that struck me most was made near the end. As we have adopted three planks of emphasis as a church, based on Acts 2:42-47 (praise—worship, participation—fellowship, and proclamation—evangelism), we were challenged to think: “I praise,” “I participate,” and “I proclaim.” It can be so easy for us to approve the church’s need to grow and improve in these areas or to expect the elders to do these things. But, no matter who we are, we can and must ask, “What can I do?” The key to being a great church is the willingness of every member to make personal application. It’s not, “What are they doing?,” “what are you doing?,” or even “what are we doing?” No! It must always primarily be, “What am I doing?” I’m thankful that our elders spoke with confidence and clarity about the fact that there is plenty of opportunity to be involved in making Bear Valley a strong, relevant church, a city set on a hill shining a light in spiritual darkness. Thank God for strong leadership, which encourages me to say, “Here am I, send me!” (cf. Isa. 6:8).

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