In 1972, NASA launched the exploratory space probe Pioneer 10. The satellite's primary mission was to reach Jupiter, photograph the planet and its moons, and beam data to earth about Jupiter's magnetic field, radiation belts and atmosphere.

Scientists regarded this as a bold plan, for at that time no earth satellite had ever gone beyond Mars, and they feared the asteroid belt would destroy the satellite before it could reach its target. But Pioneer 10 accomplished its mission and much, much more. Swinging past the giant planet in November 1973, Jupiter's immense gravity hurled Pioneer 10 at a higher rate of speed toward the edge of the solar system. At one billion miles from the sun, Pioneer 10 passed Saturn. At some two billion miles, it hurtled past Uranus; Neptune at nearly three billion miles; Pluto at almost four billion miles. By 1997, 25 years after its launch, Pioneer 10 was more than six billion miles from the sun. And despite that immense distance, Pioneer 10 continued to beam back radio signals to scientists on Earth. "Perhaps most remarkable," one article stated, "those signals emanate from an 8-watt transmitter, which radiates about as much power as a bedroom night light, and takes more than nine hours to reach Earth." The Little Satellite That Could was not qualified to do what it did. Engineers designed Pioneer 10 with a useful life of just three years. But it kept going and going. By simple longevity, its tiny 8-watt transmitter radio accomplished more than anyone thought possible.

What about us? We are not an object that has managed to exceed scientists expectations, but rather (and more importantly) a son or daughter of God. As such how much more are we capable of with God working through us? I will ask a question for all of us to consider in our calling: Is There Anything Else I Can Do? In Matthew 20:25-27 the question is basically put before us as to what kind of leader will we be. In God’s eyes, true leaders must be servants first, putting the needs of others before our own. Let’s put this in practical terms. We must have at the forefront of our mind the question: Is There Anything Else I Can Do?

Like the satellite sent to Jupiter, we should do more.  But having human nature, we tend to want to do the least amount of work possible. Sometimes life forces us in tasks as in the story of a farmer who once observed that "the hardest thing about milking cows is that they never stay milked." Our calling is similar to milking cows in that there are things need to be done--for a church service, for a church family to be connected--that need to be done again, and again and again. Every week there are service opportunities at church in speaking, set-up, the sound system, special music, potlucks and the like. Are the same people doing the same tasks every week?  Every week there are opportunities to put others before ourselves with prayer requests, notes of encouragement, phone calls to check up on people. If it is not the responsibility of each and every one of us, then whose responsibility is it? Every week we have occasions to ask: Is There Anything Else I Can Do? To do less than seeking to do more is to be unprofitable before God. It has been said that there are three kinds of workers. For example, when a piano is to be moved, the first kind gets behind and pushes, the second pulls and guides, and the third grabs the piano stool. The inference is that the last individual waits to see what the least is he can do. Luke 17:5-10 shows us that to do only what is required is to be unprofitable.

This is not where God wants us, as Christians, to be, and we won’t be in this state of mind if we keep the question front and center in our thoughts: Is There Anything Else I Can Do?