John Wesley College

Thanksgiving Service for 2022 (Term 4)

RECEIVING WHAT IS YOUR OWN

Luke 16:12 – “If you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is
your own.”
Luke 16:12 – “Ia kevaka dou sa sega ni dina e nai yau sa nona na tani, ko cei ena solia vei
kemudou na ka sa nomudou?”
In this life, we indeed seek for what we should own. Each day we anticipate that we will
receive what we worked for. Our desire is, we want to see the fruits of our labour. Not tomorrow,
not next week, but today and right now.
As part of human nature, we dearly search for life’s meaning and purpose. We desire to
know and see what is our purpose as man and woman created by God. Isn’t that why man create
educational system to assist us in finding our purpose in life and its fulfillment? We come
together in this school with our own desire and expectation of how things should happen or
become. We do have different views and belief system. The question we need to ask, how can
we work together and values each other’s worth through character, talents, gifts and positive
ideas.
Our theme for this thanksgiving service is – Receiving what is your own!
What needs to be emphasized is our working together is for the development, and
betterment of our school through unity, love, integrity, faithfulness, and accountability. Even
though John Wesley College is owned by the Methodist Church in Fiji, but this school really need
your gifts and talents. You take up this work with its challenge where your field of investment are
the students of this school. You mold students who will become leaders of tomorrow. When you
see one of your past students’ lives successfully today, this is what I mean – You now then receive
what you own!
In the Bible, the desire of those who followed Jesus Christ is for them to be like Christ.
Moreover, the biblical terms of discipleship run along that line of principle, i.e., Christ must be
seen in the lives of those who follow him. The way they live, the way they act, the way they speak,
and the way they relate to one another. We not only need quantity but quality people who bears
good Godly holistic characters. This is not an easy thing to accomplish, but it is possible to
achieve.
This school belongs to the Methodist Church in Fiji as I have mentioned, but that does not
mean as Methodist Talatala I can do whatever I want. No! I am here because I honor my leaders
and believe it is the calling from God. And I thank each and everyone of you for the unity, and
hardwork shown towards your calling and we all know that we do our part, the parents are doing
their part, and as well as our students.

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The Methodist Church in Fiji aims to achieve its dreams through all her school, i.e., to see that all
our students are guided in the right path of academic excellence and balanced spirituality. With
our multi-racial, and religious pluralism we still can work together for the sake of our students.
I want to quote the words of Gary Montoya a Christian writer and pastor - “The lowest level of
serving is when you are told what to do. The greatest level of serving is when your leader’s dream
becomes your dream. When you fulfill your leader’s dreams, your dreams will come to pass
because they are connected. Servant leaders bring solutions, ideas, and wisdom.”

You can see what you own in this school, that is, through your students whom you teach. Maybe
you already witnessed this fact, a young man, or young lady coming to you and say, sir or madam
I was your student at John Wesley College, now I am a doctor or lawyer. And this is what this
great profession is all about. Never allow negative thoughts to dampen our spirit of faithfulness
and hope. The call to all of us is to be faithful to the Ministry of Education, and to the Methodist
Church in Fiji. And you know what, God will bless me according to my faithfulness and not
because I am a Methodist.

Luke 16:12 – “If you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is
your own.”
“If you build someone else’s vision, God will build yours.”
“If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted,
or Beethoven played music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry.”
(Martin Luther King Jr)
To end this message – mark this important word “faithfulness.”
“It denotes one who is utterly reliable. It is one who shows unchanging affection or support in
the face of difficulty. It is allegiance to a superior or employer. It is unwavering support to a cause,
person, or assignment. This is a person whom an employer can depend on – and a person God
can count on to carry through an assignment to the end” (Renner, Rick. 2016. Sparkling Gems
from the Greek, Shippensburg: Harrison House Publisher, 145).
Amen
Benediction – Let us pray: The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon
you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace! Now
may grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, be with each and everyone of us, now and forevermore.
Amen.

Let us all rise and recite together our school pledge.

Principal’s address before disperses.