Sunday, November 3, 2013

No Excuses...

We've been studying Joseph in our Life Connect sunday school class at church.  Today we studied about how dyfunctional Joseph's family really was.  His father Jacob, lied to his father Isaac and cheated his older brother out of his birth right.  He had children by many different women.  He showed favoritism towards his son Joseph which caused his other sons to all hate Joseph, conspire against him, and sell him into slavery.  How messed up is that?  I've heard this story over and over but today something new struck me.  You see, there are no perfect families.  We've all got a certain amount of dysfunction going on.  Even in the most loving families things go wrong.  Over and over again God proves that no matter what you've been through, no matter what you've done wrong, no matter what someone else has done to you, God can still use you.  God can still turn it around for good.  I don't know about you, but this is an encouragment to me.  We may be imperfect, but God loves us anyway, and He can use us to touch other's lives.  He can turn our mess into something good.

The next time you feel like GOD can't use you, just remember...

Noah was a drunk 
Abraham was too old
Isaac was a daydreamer
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Joseph was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Gideon was afraid
Sampson had long hair and was a womanizer
Rahab was a prostitute
Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
David had an affair and was a murderer
Elijah was suicidal
Isaiah preached naked
Jonah ran from God
Naomi was a widow
Job went bankrupt
John the Baptist ate bugs
Peter denied Christ
The Disciples fell asleep while praying
Martha worried about everything
The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once
Zaccheus was too small
Paul was too religious
Timothy had an ulcer...
AND Lazarus was dead!


No more excuses now!! God can use you to your full potential. 
Besides you aren't the message, you are just the messenger.

Monday, October 14, 2013

Dealing with Difficult People...

As a Christian, how are we supposed to “deal” with difficult situations or difficult people? Usually our first reaction is to try and “get back” at the person or persons that caused our grief to begin with.  We feel like we need to make them pay for what they've done.  But the way God wants us to react is completely different, and doesn't come naturally.  We want the person who has wronged us, or someone we love, to be punished.  We want vengeance, but God says vengeance is His, and His alone.  We are to “love each other like members of our family”, “bless people who harass us” and “be the best at showing honor to each other”.  We are to never “pay back anyone for their evil actions with evil actions” or “try to get revenge for ourselves”.  God wants us to defeat evil with good. 

Romans 12:9-21Love should be shown without pretending. Hate evil, and hold on to what is good.  Love each other like the members of your family. Be the best at showing honor to each other. Don’t hesitate to be enthusiastic—be on fire in the Spirit as you serve the Lord!  Be happy in your hope, stand your ground when you’re in trouble, and devote yourselves to prayer.  Contribute to the needs of God’s people, and welcome strangers into your home. Bless people who harass you—bless and don’t curse them.  Be happy with those who are happy, and cry with those who are crying.  Consider everyone as equal, and don’t think that you’re better than anyone else. Instead, associate with people who have no status. Don’t think that you’re so smart.  Don’t pay back anyone for their evil actions with evil actions, but show respect for what everyone else believes is good.  If possible, to the best of your ability, live at peace with all people.  Don’t try to get revenge for yourselves, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath. It is written, Revenge belongs to me; I will pay it back, says the Lord. Instead, If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. By doing this, you will pile burning coals of fire upon his head.  Don’t be defeated by evil, but defeat evil with good.

God also wants us to forgive each other.  Sometimes, well, a lot of times, that’s easier said than done.  Holding on to a grudge, and to anger, only weighs your heart down.  Forgiveness is a choice, and it’s not for the sake of the one who wronged you.  It’s for YOU

Colossians 3:13
Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
Matthew 18:21-22
Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.


I didn't write this so I could point a finger at you or anyone else.  I didn't write it because I thought you  needed to read it.  I didn't write it so that we could all think of people whom we believe “need” to read it.  I wrote it because God put it in front of me today, more than once, and said Amy, YOU need to remember this.  So I thought I’d share it, just in case you needed it too.  Blessings!

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

How Will You Be Remembered?

As I sit here at home, recovering from a minor surgical procedure, I'm wishing I could be with my sweet husband who had to fly home to Tennessee because his sister passed away unexpectedly.  My surgery was already scheduled and didn't need to be delayed.  I am so thankful for the wonderful friends I have here in Wilmington who have been so willing to take care of me and the boys while Scott is away.  His sister Beth was only 46 years old.  We went to High School together.  I knew her long before I ever knew Scott.  She had a very tough life, but this one thing I do know, she really loved her big brother and her nephews.  It's made me reflect on my own life, and how I will be remembered. Will the life I have lived point others to the love and salvation in Christ?  I jotted down some things I'd like to be, that I strive to be.  I don't always succeed, but I do try.  God's not done with me yet! These are also things that I truly hope I have instilled in my children.  So here they are, in no particular order.  I hope in some way this touches others lives as well and makes them think about what kind of legacy they will be leaving behind.

Honest - to remember the value of honesty, that honesty and trust go hand in hand.  Once trust is broken, it's nearly impossible to get it back.
Kind - everyone appreciates kindness.  Saying please and thank you, holding a door for someone, helping when they drop something, making eye contact and smiling, and having a good attitude.  Do your best to show kindness in every situation, wherever you go.
Compassionate & Empathetic - showing real concern for others suffering, and acting on it, being sensitive, warm & tender, helping another person who cannot help themselves. Understanding & identifying with another's suffering, listening and comforting them.
Forgiving - forgive others when they hurt you.  You don't really know the path they walk, the things that cause them to act the way they do.  Pray for your enemies, that God would help you to love the unlovable.  Carrying around a grudge is like carrying a huge boulder around YOUR neck, not theirs.  Refusing to forgive only hurts YOU.
Patient - Being impatient with people is an immediate turn off.  It makes you seem like an insensitive jerk.  Think about how you would want to be treated in a similar situation. Take a deep breath, understand that God has probably delayed you for a higher purpose. Look around and see what that opportunity might be.
Persevering & Brave - keep on trying, don't quit.  Work hard, despite difficulties, in spite of
opposition.  When you fall down, get back up, dust yourself off, and keep on going.  Be a good example to those around you.  Failure only happens if you quit trying.
Positive in Attitude - to be encouraging, to see the glass half full instead of half empty, to look on the bright side of life and find humor in my daily struggles, to stop complaining and look for the good in situations and in people.
Respectful - to receive respect, you have to give it.  It cannot be demanded any more than you could demand someone to love you.  It is something that is earned by exemplifying all of the above traits.  


Proverbs 20:11 - "Even a child is known by his deeds, whether what he does is pure and right."


In short - Live your life in such a way that if someone were to speak badly of you, no one else would ever believe it. 

And finally a quote from one of my favorite people:
"Leave everything you do, every place you go, everything you touch, a little better for your having been there." ~ Julie Andrews

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Oh no you didn't......Oh yes....I DID!

I'm going out on a limb.  I'm just gonna walk right out there to the tip of it.  Scott & I have been on a church staff for about 26 years now.  We've been around the block.  This isn't our first rodeo, as they say.  So when I say what I'm gonna say, I say it having had years of first hand, front line experience.  When something happens at church that you personally dislike or don't agree with and then you get angry and decide to quit everything and leave, who do you think you are hurting?  You aren't hurting the person or people you disagreed with.  They probably don't know or possibly don't care.  You ARE hurting yourself.  You ARE hurting God's church.  You ARE hurting your church family.  I know all about getting "fed up".  I know all about being "talked about".  I know all about being "the last man standing".  I know all about "disagreeable people".  Been there.  Done that.  Bought a million T-shirts.  If you quit now....you are letting satan win.  Plain and simple.  There, I said it....yep, I walked right out there on the very tip of that fragile limb and said it.  Let me tell you what I'm gonna do.  I'm NOT letting satan win!!  I'm NOT quitting!!  I REFUSE to let satan have his way.  I CHOOSE to forgive anyone who has hurt me.  I CHOOSE to let it go and give it to GOD.  He is the only one who has any business carrying that burden.  He is the ONLY one who has any business judging the hearts of others.  Not you, not me....God.  God sees the master plan and He holds the future in His hands.  He knows what tomorrow holds.  He already knew about what we are going through right now, and He is busy working in and through it my friends.  It's not your job to walk away when the going gets tough.  It's your job to stand up WITH God and go about His work more fervently than ever!  If you throw it all down and walk away, you are essentially throwing it down at God's feet and walking away from the work He asked YOU to do.  God works ALL things for good.  We HAD to go through EVERY bit of this in order for GOD'S plan to come about.  All of it, the good parts and the bad parts.  He's not just working in one person's life here....He is working in ALL our lives, weaving it all into a beautiful tapestry, one thread at a time.  You and I have no right to judge how or why He's doing it the way He is!  Listen, the only thing God is concerned about right now is whether or not YOU are gonna fulfill your part!  We've got to stop pointing at the splinter in our brother's and sister's eyes and get the plank out of our OWN!  What are you doing?  Where are you going?  Stop....Listen to God....and get back on track.  Stop letting satan pull you away from God's work.  Satan is having a party right now.  He thinks he's winning.  What he doesn't know is that Pastor Chuck & Raquel are doing God's will!  They are going to go to Brazil and they are going to win thousands to Christ!  They are going to change village after village.  They are going because GOD has called them to go and He used circumstances in their lives to show them the direction He wanted them to go!  It had nothing to do with you, with me, or with anyone else!  It is what GOD wanted to happen.  Who are we to question His actions or how He did it??  It had to be this way because that is how GOD wanted it to be.  Scott and I have actually been in a situation like this before.  We were "the last ones standing" on a staff in Tampa, Florida many years ago.  It wasn't easy.  As a matter of fact, it was one of the most difficult times in our lives!  Our boys were very small and I didn't work outside the home.  Scott was NEVER home because he was doing practically every job in the church.  It was very hard and I remember wondering why God would put us, and that church, through such a difficult time.  Perhaps it was to prepare us for this?  Who knows.  My beloved friends, you have got to get your focus back on what is important to God, and that is doing HIS work.  It's not gossiping about what's happened.  It's not seeking revenge on anyone you feel is responsible for our situation.  It's not holding grudges and despising your fellow church members.  It's not quitting and walking away.  You have no right to say that you can't stay in a place as long as this person or that person is there.  How are you any better than anyone else?  How is your sin any better than someone else's sin?  To God it's all the same.  He loves every single one of us lowly, dirty, unworthy, unwilling, whiny, sinners.  He looks at us through Jesus' blood and to Him, we are ALL His beloved children!  Now, I feel that tiny tip of a limb I've walked out on shaking a bit and it may be close to breaking so I'll step back now.  But know this, I love this church, and I'm not backing down to satan.  Even if that means I offend someone by saying so.  So let's get our eyes back on Jesus, pick up what we've thrown down, and get back to God's work.  It's not a sin to be angry.  But allowing anger to cause you to sin is a different story.  Carrying around grudges and anger towards someone is like taking poison and expecting it to kill the other person.  It only hurts you.  I challenge you this very minute, right where you are, to CHOOSE to forgive the ones who have hurt you or made you angry, no matter what they've done.  Forgiving them doesn't let them off the hook, it's not YOUR hook my friend.  It's God's.

Proverbs 24:10
If you faint in the day of advesity, your strength is small.

James 1:2-4
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.  And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.



2 Chronicles 15:7
But you, take courage!  Do not let you hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.

1 Peter 4:12-13
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when His glory is revealed.



Monday, September 9, 2013

To Love & to Be Loved...

More frequently than not, my morning reading hits circumstances in my life right on the nose.  This morning it hit these circumstances right in the face.  Our church has been, and continues to go through, some very rough times.  Though I don't always understand why or how these things happen, I do know that God does allow circumstances to happen in our lives, good and bad, in order to help us grow into what He wants us to be.  It's our choice whether we allow God to mold and shape us through these circumstances.  We can choose to become bitter and hard and ignore what God has planned.  We do have free will to resist.  I fully admit to trying to do it my way many times, but it never turns out like I've planned.  Being a computer geek, I often turn to my computer and Google to help me find specific bible verses to deal with certain situations.  I type in, What does the Bible say about this.... What does the Bible say about that... and up pops the verses I was trying to find.  Today, at a loss for how to cope, I typed in, "What does the bible say about coming together.", and I was taken to 1 John 4:7-21.  I sometimes find a scripture that has so many commas in it that I lose the main point.  Does that ever happen to you?  I mean I know it's hiding in there somewhere in that beautiful King James verse, but for the life of me cannot separate it all out into something my brain can comprehend.  It's at those times that I turn to The Message.  It's a translation that speaks in modern day language, and although some may think it's not quite a accurate, it does hit the nail on the head 99.9% of the time.  Pay close attention to verses 11-12 and 20-21.  Those hit these circumstances we face right on the nose.  So here it is below.  I'll let it finish up this blog post because, I couldn't say it better myself.
Blessings.

1 John 4:7-21
The Message

God Is Love

7-10 My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God.

11-12 My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love!

13-16 This is how we know we’re living steadily and deeply in him, and he in us: He’s given us life from his life, from his very own Spirit. Also, we’ve seen for ourselves and continue to state openly that the Father sent his Son as Savior of the world. Everyone who confesses that Jesus is God’s Son participates continuously in an intimate relationship with God. We know it so well, we’ve embraced it heart and soul, this love that comes from God.

To Love, to Be Loved

17-18 God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we’re free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ’s. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love.

19 We, though, are going to love—love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first.

20-21 If anyone boasts, “I love God,” and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won’t love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can’t see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You’ve got to love both.

Monday, August 5, 2013

A moment to reflect...


I finally have a moment to sit down and reflect on all the events of the last couple of weeks.  In trying to gather my thoughts as to what I’d like to say and to whom, it all still seems to be a big jumble.  So, I decided to just go ahead and start writing and see if anything intelligent comes out!  These past two weeks have been filled with so many big emotions...excitement, stress, elation, exasperation, enjoyment, exhaustion, anticipation, love, amusement, discovery, patience, impatience, appreciation & hope.  I have come to a point of being a bit numb from it all!  Not in a bad way...just in a completely, thoroughly exhausted kind of way.  But boy was it fun!  Trying to come up with an adjective to describe how I feel now is impossible.  I am so very, very thankful to God for bringing such a wonderful, sweet, beautiful, Christian, young woman into my eldest son’s life.  I prayed for her before I knew her.  I prayed for her when he was just a baby.  I knew she was out there somewhere, but I had no idea how their lives would eventually cross.  There are many reasons why God brought us to Wilmington, but this one, this particular reason, is absolutely the best by far!  Not only did we gain a daughter (finally!!), but we gained a wonderful extended family in the Turkals!  We are so very blessed to be close friends with Ann & Mark, and to say Alex’s brothers are stoked about having Sam as their brother-in-law and Laura as their sister-in-law would be an huge understatement!  Wow!  God is good!!  Now as I start packing up Alex’s room, it hasn’t quite hit me yet that they are moving so far away.  But, thankfully these days we have the internet, skype, facebook and texting to keep up with each other.  Unlike when I did the same thing nearly 26 years ago when I got married and moved to Ft. Worth, TX.  I’m very excited for them!  I know God has some wonderful things in store for them, and I can’t wait to see what He’s gonna do!  Thank you to everyone who shared in Alex & Laura’s coming together.  Thank you for sharing in their big day, whether it be with your physical presence or your prayers and well-wishes!  God used all of that to bring these two extraordinary people together and changed all our lives for the better!  And now...on to the next adventure!  Please keep us all in your prayers as we them up and move them to Columbus, OH in about 10 days!  

Genesis 2:18 - "The Lord God said, "It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."

Friday, May 17, 2013

Are You Disciplined?

Discipline....a word that many of us equate with punishment or consequences.  Yet, it also has another meaning.  When you say a musician or singer is very "disciplined", it means that they study and work very hard at what they do.  Most of us can say we are "disciplined" in something.  Perhaps you are a very disciplined teacher.  Perhaps you are a very disciplined runner, or physician, or student.  You could even be a very disciplined video game player, although I don't recommend wasting all your time doing that. Some people have made a career out of testing video games for companies, and surely they must be disciplined in the art of video gaming to do so.  So, at what are YOU disciplined?  What do you spend most of your time doing?  What are you perfectionistic about?  For me, I'd say my list is rather short.  There are very few things I'm perfectionistic about, unless you count the way I fold towels, but perhaps that's just more obsessive compulsive than disciplined.  I could list singing, parenting, my job...but in the long run those things are not the most important.  What I really want to be disciplined at is showing love, encouraging others, helping others, and giving joy to others.  As I think about it, all those things can be accomplished simply by being "disciplined" in God's word.  If you let His words truly sink into your soul; if you let His words truly become a part of who you are, understand them for yourself, believe them to be true, and have faith that what He said, He will do, then all those other things will fall right into place.  When you are disciplined at something, you are confident, strong and secure.  Wouldn't the world be a better place if we all were confident in showing love to each other, strong in encouraging each other through the tough times, and so secure in the joy of the Lord that it just oozes out of use and infuses everyone we touch?  That's the kind of discipline I long for, the kind that continually brings me closer to my God, the kind that can set me free from the worries of this world, and enable me to accomplish more than I ever dreamed.  Which leads me to a  favorite quote from one of my favorite people..."Discipline gives me the foundation that leaves me free to fly.  If I really know what I'm doing then I can soar."  ~ Julie Andrews

Let that be my goal, to be so disciplined in God's word and ways, that I am set free to soar, to do and to be all that He wants me to do and be.

Joshua 1:8:Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.





Monday, May 6, 2013

I'm Cracked!


I goof up.  I make mistakes.  I make bad decisions.  I say the wrong things.  I’m flawed, cracked, imperfect, scarred.  It’s not a matter of if I will let you down, but when.  Knowing all that, God chooses to love me anyway, completely and without condition and, He’s forgiven me completely.  I have a clean slate.  Therein lies my hope, my optimism, my reason to forgive the flaws in others.  Sometimes, for a moment or two, a cloud moves over my vision, and I lose sight of this hope.  It’s at those times I need the ones who love me most to help me find it again, to sweep away the clouds and find the sun (or the Son) on an otherwise gloomy day.  God puts those people in my life for that very reason at the perfect time.  He knew that, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t be happy, smiley and optimistic all the time.   He certainly knew I wouldn't be able to behave myself all the time!  Some days it’s more of a struggle than others, but I am profoundly grateful for the blessings He’s given me.  I am very aware of how blessed I am.  I have a husband I love beyond measure.  A Godly man, who is gentle and kind, sweet and funny, and my very best friend.  I have three boys who have turned into wonderful, talented, dedicated, Godly young men.  They make me realize there are at least three things in this life I’ve done very well!  I have music, a true gift from God I believe, and it often is the only thing that carries me through a gloomy day.  My entire life has been filled with music, every kind it seems, and though it hasn’t brought me fame, it has brought me so much more.  I have loyal friends who love me warts and all.  Some who have been more like family, and carried me through some of the darkest days.  Some I’ve known for many years, some I've only known a short while, but are not any less a part of my heart.  God has blessed me beyond measure.  These blessings can’t be bought, yet they are worth far more than anything money could buy.  So remember, when I do goof up, if I disappoint you in some way, I warned you it would happen.  But please do try to remember that I am trying.  God is still working on me, and He will be until the day I see Him face to face.   I promise until that day to do my best to keep my eyes on the Son, push away the clouds when they get in your way, and give you a smile of encouragement.  I thank you in advance for the days you need to do that for me.   It is my goal in life, although I do fail at it miserably sometimes, to be an encouragement to others and to give them a smile when they need it most.   If you're reading this, SMILE!  God loves you….even when you goof up!!  J

·      **   I have no idea what provoked this blog today.  I've not made anyone mad (that I'm aware of), or goofed up today (yet).  God just put it in my heart and out if flowed through my keyboard.  It often happens that way and I am always profoundly humbled and grateful when He chooses to use me in that way.  I hope that it touches the ones who needed to hear it, whomever and wherever they may be! 
     Much love & blessings,
     Amy
__________________________________
·     ** Romans 5:8 –
But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

26 years later....

This particular blog post has been a while in the making.  I'd say, about 26 years or so.  That's how long I've been in the Ministry with my husband...the first year as an engaged couple and the next 25 years married.  Yes, he's the one with the title, he's the one listed as the Minister of Music, but we are, and always have been, in this together...a team.  And, once we added kids to the mix, they too became a part of the "Ministry team".  I know when I became a Minister's wife, I really had no idea what I was in for.  I had some lofty ideas of how it would be.  Boy were they wrong.  Don't get me wrong, I've loved almost every minute of it, but it has been absolutely nothing like what I thought it would be.  I want my words to cause you to stop and think.  I'm giving you a glimpse behind the curtain, so to speak.  Being in the Ministry, we're up there in front of you, week after week.  You see us each week do what we do for the church, whether it's preaching, or leading the music, or performing it, and you have a perception of who we are and what we're like.  Unless you are a very close friend, those perceptions are based on just what you see up there in public.  It's a huge responsibility really, knowing that people are looking at you, your attitudes, your actions, your moods and making an assumption on who you really are, what you're really like.  It's a tiny bit like being famous, so to speak.  We are not by any means "famous", but a lot more people "know" us, that we actually know personally.  It gives you the feeling that you're always being watched, judged, even when you don't know it.  I'm not complaining, so don't get me wrong.  I cannot image being truly famous and never having a moment out in public to just be anonymous.  We're in a  small "fish bowl" thankfully, not the public aquarium!

What I'm trying to say, and being way too wordy in doing so, is that "this ain't no piece of cake".  Our goal is to do our very best, to be a good example in all situations, even when we don't know someone is looking, and to show the love of Christ to everyone we come in contact with.  We do not always succeed.  We make mistakes just like everyone else.  We fall down.  We get discouraged.  We get angry, and frequently frustrated.  We don't always feel like smiling or being nice...that's just life....but we do try.  There's not a single minister, or minister's family, on this earth, that doesn't deal with these same things.  So, the next time you are tempted to talk badly about the ministers in your church, I want you to stop and think for just a minute.  This man God has appointed to minister in the church has given up a "normal" life to do this job.  What has this man and his family given up you may ask?  Most don't get to live in their home towns, near the families.  They raise their kids far away from their Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles & Cousins and only get to see their own parents a couple times a year.  They give up any real negotiations on salary and benefits to take care of their family, because most churches take offense to a prospective minister even asking how much the job pays. Would you take a job that you knew didn't pay enough, didn't provide adequate benefits for you, much less your family, caused you to have to pay huge amounts of self-employment taxes, yet expected you to be the best dressed person at church, drive a nice car and live in their neighborhoods?  No...I dare say most of you wouldn't.  Who in their right mind would?  A Minister, that's who.  Why?  Because God has called them to do so.  There are very, very few churches out there that actually take care of their staff the way they should.  I'm not saying that the church should pay them big $$, so they can live in luxury.  There are basic things a church should do for their Ministry team.  They should pay them enough to live relatively comfortably in today's economy.  They should provide both health & dental insurance benefits for them and their family.  They should pay at least half of the enormous self-employment tax that is levied against ordained ministers.  And finally they should contribute to a retirement fund.  This is something many of you expect from your employer.  This isn't anything extravagant.  I can honestly say that of all the churches we've served in, only one has ever taken care of us this way.  I've heard people say, "Well MY employer doesn't take care of me.  Why should YOU get taken care of that way?".  That kind of attitude is exactly what is wrong with churches today.  The church is called to a higher standard.  We are not to be like the rest of the world.  We are to be the finest example of love.

Your minister's entire family is affected by how he is treated.  Don't whisper and murmur behind your pastor's back!  Don't block every new idea he brings before you because "you never did it that way before" or because you "don't like him" or you "are afraid of change" or you're just plain ol' grouchy & bitter.  STOP and THINK.  What is the church there for?  Is it so that YOU can be happy in your own protected little world where nothing ever changes?  Or is it there to reach OUT to a lost world and show them the UNCONDITIONAL LOVE that is in a relationship with Christ?  HOW can you show them that, if you cannot even show it among yourselves?  HOW can you expect anyone to look at your life, and how you treat your MINISTERS, and expect them to want to know the God you say you serve?  So, what can you do to show love to your Ministers and their families?  Pray for them daily.  They face just as many difficult issues as you do each day.  Love them.  That seems simple, but it seems to be one of the hardest.  Love them by actually getting to know them, and by taking care of them & their family.  A well-loved, prayed-for, Minister can concentrate better on doing God's work in the church and the community, instead of constantly worrying how he's gonna pay the rent, get his kid's cavities filled and fix his beat up old car.  It's biblical.  Just read 1 Timothy 5:17-18 or 1 Corinthians 9:14. Support them.  That also seems like an easy thing, but for some people it's not.  Your pastor is going to have new ideas, he's going to want to try new, biblically based things, and if all you do is constantly resist his efforts, well eventually he may just stop trying.  That is the sign of a dying church my friends.  If you wall yourself off from the outside world, cater only to your own needs and wants, and you don't try anything new to reach the lost, your church will DIE.  There are thousands and thousands of dying churches out there today.  Churches that haven't had one person baptized all year.  Churches that have zero young people attending.  Folks, if you don't have any young people in your church....your church is going to DIE.  They are the future, not the enemy.  Embrace them.  Remember what it was like to be young!  Be good examples for them to follow, not bitter, old grouches they want to avoid....but that's a blog post for another day!  In closing, I just want to say that, for me and my family and my minister husband, we cannot imagine doing a different job.  We are all in this together, for better or for worse, and we have experienced both in church.  It's not a job for wimps.  In my eyes, Ministers are Super Heroes!  Able to SMILE in the face of hurtful words, able to PREACH God's word in the face of sin, able to SING His praises in the face of adversity, and able to STAND against satan's attacks.  I leave you with this....if you would just pray for your Ministers and their families, love them and take care of them, come along side them with a willing heart and cheerful attitude helping them bring the lost ones home, support their new adventures in ministry instead of resisting, and really get to know their hearts for God, then that church you belong to would bloom, and grow, and thrive and reach the lost in record numbers!  The only thing holding it back....is your willingness to serve cheerfully along side your Ministers.

Isaiah 52:7-10
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, "Your God reigns!" Listen!  Your watchmen lift up their voices; together they shout for joy.  When the Lord returns to Zion, they will see it with their own eyes.  Burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem.  The Lord has shown His holy power before the eyes of all the nations.  All the ends of the earth will see the victory of God.   

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Jarod's Open Door...

This post is a bit of a "way to go" for my youngest son Jarod.  He's 14 and a freshman in High School.  As a minister's kid, he was practically born in church.  He gave his heart to Jesus when he was 4 1/2 years old.  He's always been a little bit ahead of the usual milestones.  I think this is because he's the youngest, and always wanted to be like his older brothers, so he's always been in a hurry to grow up.  He has grown into a fine young man, and we are very proud of him.  Not long ago, we had the opportunity to go out to eat with just Jarod.  The other two boys were busy.  As we had dinner, Jarod told us about his History class.  They had been discussing religions in history and his teacher was trying to describe the different beliefs.  He started out by saying that "Christians believe that if you're good enough, you'll get into heaven."  Jarod started shaking his head and raised his hand and told the teacher that wasn't right at all.  So, the teacher then said, "Ok, explain."  And Jarod.....walked right through that open door without hesitation.  He was able to explain what Christians believe, and share what salvation is with his entire class (and the astonished teacher).  Moving on, the teacher then stated that it was Christians in the Middle Ages that persecuted and put people to death for not believing as they did.  Once again, Jarod raised his hand and the teacher called on him.  Jarod told him that those were not Christians, but rather people who were twisting God's word for their own purposes, calling themselves Christians doesn't make them Christians.  True Christians would never do such a thing.  It was then that the teacher moved his discussion to Catholicism in history, ha ha!  His story really spoke to me, and so I thought it might speak to you as well.  Doors like that get opened to each of us every day.  How many times have we stood there staring at that open door, afraid to even approach it, much less walk through it.  Sometimes we get brave enough to walk up to it and peek in, but rarely walk on through.  I want to be someone that sees that open door, and boldly walks right through it as quickly as I can before it shuts again, because we never know when a door could slam shut and never open again.  Heaven forbid we should miss the last opportunity we ever have to share Jesus with someone.  Even if you walk through it and get thrown right back out, at least you have planted that seed, and can say you tried.  So way to go Jarod!  I pray that you get many more opportunities to share God's word through the way you live your life, your music and by walking bravely through those doors of opportunity when they swing wide open!

Matthew 5:14-16
Good News Translation (GNT)
14 “You are like light for the whole world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15 No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl; instead it is put on the lampstand, where it gives light for everyone in the house. 16 In the same way your light must shine before people, so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.