HEAR YE! HEAR YE! :) Now, that I am mostly away from my home, I have time to do a lot of thinking....often I make posts that reflects the value of what I am thinking. For years, I have been helped by a preachers challenge that was made many years ago, when he said: You measure greatness by what it takes to stop you and also How can you stop a man who will not quit. God knew that I needed that challenge early on. Having that challenge embedded in my heart has helped me to continue even when every human part of me is screaming for me to quit. I want to make some comments that may help someone who is thinking about throwing in the towel. I will need to be brief, because I know that it is difficult to hold ones attention long this way. There are perhaps preachers right now who are struggling with the idea of whether they should stay or go. Many times, our thinking goes in that direction when we are going through our storms. Storms of that kind are never much fun. They will drain, discourage, and defeat you; if you let them. But God has different plans...he wants to build you, and bless you, or He wants to tame you, tender you, toughen you, or teach you. Try and determine, during your storm, what it is that He is doing. Then, in these difficult days, there are many in their churches as members, who are discouraged and they are either thinking about going to another church or quitting altogether. Satan is always suggesting that the grass is greener on the other side and it could be. But he does not tell you that that green grass is also often bitter! I am in a ministry called: Strengthen the things Which Remain. My focus is on how I can make things stronger as I minister to churches and to pastors. I do that as a minister out here, but I also do it as a member of my own local church. In theory, our church could be going through its own storm, and as it does, I could feel the effects of that storm, as a member. I could decide in human terms that I do not like storms, so I will just go somewhere else. For me to do that, with the ministry that I am involved in, would be nothing more than a serious retreat. Then, in my case, how could I then boast that I am going everywhere to help make other churches stronger, but I am unwilling to help make my own church stronger? For that reason, I support and pray for my pastor, and encourage him to make it through his storm. Then when we both go through our storms, together, we will have seen that the Lord is able to calm the storms and can make it to the other side. With this being true, I pray much for my pastor and also other pastors who may be going through their storms. One thing that is so hurtful, even on the part of us as ministers, is to see a preacher, or member who has fallen, and rather than pray for that person, and encourage that person, we beat them down, or criticize them. What if the same effort went into praying for them instead. Thanks for letting me share these thoughts....
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 20:58:03 +0000
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