The Pastor's Place

Paul's final instructions in his first letter to the Corinthian church also apply to the modern believer: "Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. And do everything with love" (1 Cor. 16:13-14).

I started to write the word "advice" for the modern believer, but I struck the word. Advice implies that it is optional - that you can take it or leave it. But there is an emphatic impact in these short bullet points of instruction.

In the day that we live (and I believe that we are in "last days" ministry), these words can carry even greater emphasis for the church. The questions become:

• What do we need to stand guard against? 
• How do we stand firm in our faith? 
• Where do we derive our courage and strength? 
• And the very personal evaluation that reveals our true motives - "Am I doing this in love?" 

Our answers will reveal whether or not we are obedient to God's directives. So, this isn't mere advice that we can be disregard. Paul's words are instruction from the Lord that is meant to prepare us for the daily battle that we live in.

Labels: Advice, battle plan, instruction

"I cannot eat for sighing;
my groans pour out like water.
What I always feared has happened to me.
What I dreaded has come true.
I have no peace, no quietness.
I have no rest; only trouble comes.” 
(Job 3:24-26)

Do Job's words capture how you feel?  If you are going through a time of trial, tribulation or trouble, you may relate to Job's lament. 

Some may try to trivialize your circumstances with trite truisms and offer advice that amounts to easy fixes.  Others may respond like Job's three friends (notice their initial response - they tore their robes in grief and sat with Job, silent for seven days).  But the pain you feel is real.  It hurts.  And it feels like nothing will ever be the same. 

Hold on. Don't give in to despair.  God has not abandoned the work of His hands.  And YOU are the work of His hands!  Trust. Wait. Listen. Go ahead and grieve.  Just don't lose sight of WHO is ultimately in control of your circumstances.  Don't forget WHO holds your life in His hands.  Don't give up on God's work. Because He has certainly not given up on you.

Labels: Trials

I often quote a portion of Nehemiah 8:10 without considering the context of his statement: "Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!” 

Verse 9 reveals that the people responded to the public reading of the Law with mourning and weeping.  Nehemiah, the priests, and Levites encouraged them by declaring a sacred day of celebration before the Lord.  Why would the people respond this way?  Because the Law revealed how far Israel had rebelled against God's standards.  They wept with great sorrow and repentance. They wept because they heard God's Word understood it's meaning!

While this response was important, the leaders knew that it was equally important to remember the God who gave the Law and to recognize that He is "a God of forgiveness, gracious and merciful, slow to become angry, and rich in unfailing love" (9:17). 

God takes great joy in His people. Repentance, restoration and revival are integral parts of His plan.  HIS joy becomes OUR strength when we respond to His discipline and instruction and when we walk in obedience to His Word!

Labels: Joy

Reading from Ezra this morning and it got me to thinking about those who opposed the rebuilding of the temple.  When they couldn't corrupt the work from within, they managed to disrupt the work from without.  Ezra even identifies the leaders by name - "Rehum, Shimshai, and their colleagues".  We don't know all of those who oppose the work at Calvary, but I believe that it's important to identify the enemies of the work of God. Any time that the church begins to grow and advance (even if its just a rebuilding phase), the enemy will do whatever he can to frustrate the work. If the devil can't insinuate himself into our fellowship, then he will attempt to disrupt and oppose it from without.  We need to be aware of his schemes and be prepared to stand against him in every way.  There may be delays in the work, but God's purpose and plan WILL prevail!

Labels: Enemies