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When I was much younger, I never understood the value of retirement parties. I did not understand the importance or the value of giving someone gifts simply because they had been on the job for thirty or forty years. If they had made some great lasting achievement then I could understand a celebration, but not just for being on the job for a number of years.
As I have gotten older, I realized ninety percent of doing a good job is just showing up everyday with a desire to serve. An employee who is there every day is a blessing to his boss. A father who comes home every night is a blessing to his children. A spouse who helps around the house is a blessing to their spouse. A Church leader who is at church every Sunday is a blessing to the church. Showing up and continuing to show up with a desire to serve is the key.
Paul said it this way, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” Paul was saying that he kept the faith and kept showing up to preach the word through shipwrecks, imprisonment, pain, heartache, despair and torture.
In Matthew it says, “But he that endures unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Truly it is not how you start the race but whether you are willing to endure the end. The Olympic events don’t give gold medals for the one who starts fast but never finishes. You have to finish to obtain the gold medal. It is God who promises a “Crown of Righteousness” to one who keeps the faith and endures to the end.
We need to endure but we need God’s grace to do it. Rely on God’s grace for strength and don’t give up, don’t give up, don’t ever give up!
Be responsive to your Pastoral Leaders. Listen to their council. They are alert to the condition of your lives and work under the strict supervision of God. Contribute to the joy of their leadership, not its drudgery. Why would you want to make things harder for them? Pray for them. They have no doubts about what they are doing or why; but it’s hard going, and they need your prayers. All they care about is living well before God. (Message Bible: Hebrews 13:17-18)
The burdens of leaders are difficult; particularly when a church is going through a season of change. Many times people find it painful and emotional. They may find it difficult to trust Leadership when they cannot see what the changes will look like. It is during these difficult times that God calls His congregation to be responsive to Pastoral Leadership because God is the one who has placed those individuals in that Leadership role.
“But what do I do if I strongly disagree with the direction the church is going?” The Bible calls for us to pray for our leaders. Pray that they are in God’s will and seeking God’s direction for every decision. Pray that those decisions be made not with a human eye, but with an eye on the Lord. Pray; Don’t gossip. Pray; Don’t get angry. Pray; Don’t get bitter. Pray; Don’t cause division. Pray; and trust in God. Your leaders need your prayers.
Many have asked me the difference between Worship and Discipleship. Some have indicated that they only need to come to Discipleship or they only need to come to Worship; they don’t need to come to both. Well, according to Pastor Rick Warren, the author of The Purpose Driven Church discipleship is the study of God’s word, that gives you the principles to live by. But Worship, which is the presence of God gives you the power to live. You cannot live by the principles of the Bible unless you have the power that comes only from God. And if you have the power without the principles, then you’re quickly fooled by Satan into being his servant instead of God’s. We need both the power and the principles of God which come only through worship and Discipleship.
To worship God, you must travel the path of praise. When we praise God we literally enthrone the Lord into our presence. Psalm 22:3 says that God inhabits or lives in the praise of His people. When we praise Him we build a place for God to come where His presence and His power is made manifest into our lives. Truly, if the praises go up, the blessings come down. Let’s make a joyful noise unto the Lord.
In Matthew 18:15-17, it reads “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the Church, treat him as you would a pagan or tax collector”
In Romans 16:17-18, it reads “I urge you brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way. They are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the mind of naive people.”
In 2 Thessalonians 2:14 it says, “If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of him. Do not associate with him in order that he may feel ashamed. Yet, do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.”
These scriptures show that sometimes we must use tough love to better the lives of people we love and the church as a whole.