Category: Pastors

Look Out for Those Looking Out for You

On By Ed AlgreenIn A Lamp unto My Path, Adoration, Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Awesome God, Beyond Description, Blessing, Celebrate God, Elders, Needs, Pastors, Praise, Praise-worthy, Recognize God, Teacher, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED: Tuesday, May 30, 2023, and I was blessed to be at O’Brien, FL when God inspired me to write this blog post. My Footnote will tell you how to read or listen to this devotional or any past episodes.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE FROM THE Amplified Bible (AMP) IS FOUND IN 1 Timothy 5:17-18

THE BIBLE TEXT IS: The elders who perform their leadership duties well are to be considered worthy of double honor (financial support), especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching [the word of God concerning eternal salvation through Christ]. For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain [to keep it from eating],” and, “The worker is worthy of his wages [he deserves fair compensation].”

MY INITIAL THOUGHTS: Interesting how Paul found it necessary to train Timothy, and us, in ways that we should take care of the Elders, or Pastors, of our church! Wouldn’t you think that if we knew how to take care of our household, our gardener or any other hired hand, we would also know how to make sure our spiritual leaders are well taken care of? Having never heard a church member complain about us not paying our pastor enough, I wonder if we shouldn’t look closer at today’s Scripture!

APPLICATION OF THE WORD: Having served on many church leadership teams and Pastor Search committees, I feel slightly qualified in speaking to this subject of which Paul speaks about in today’s Scripture. I don’t believe I will ever forget about the final offer to a prospect, from a Pastor’s Search Committee on which I served. The prospect rejected our initial invitation and terms because, in his words, he could never survive on the salary we were offering him. This was embarrassing for members of the committee, but it opened our eyes to the fact that we should never expect our Pastor to survive financially with any less than any other CEO of a group our size in our community. I find it extremely interesting how easily church members accept the church budget each year without ever questioning why our pastor is making less money than most of them do. In fact, I would dare say that many pastors’ earnings are probably less than, or very near to, the poverty level, yet we approve church budgets without ever questioning ‘Why?’. I have seen pastors who spend endless hours at the church, at hospitals, at the bedside of shut-ins and all other scenarios, and I could only try to place myself in their shoes and wonder how they could possibly do all that while barely providing for their families financially. It seems that church leaders are persistent in making sure that they get enough hours out of the pastor each week, instead of concerning themselves about whether the man is spending sufficient time with his family. This whole concept that many churches have accepted as ‘normal’ probably arises from the unfortunate lack of respect, honor and appreciation shown towards our pastors in many areas of their ministry. For example, we might easily compliment a good speaker at a conference, but are we faithful in complementing our pastor after delivering a message that he had probably spent hours to prepare? As a supervisor at work, I pushed hard for my staff to attend additional training, or to take part in valuable community events. They come back to me all ‘pumped up’ because of the networking and great ideas gleamed from other attendees of the conference or training seminar. Do we do enough of that for our pastors? All but a few versions of the Bible use the term ‘Elders’ instead of Pastors in verse 17. Do you even know who your church elders are? Do you say ‘thank you’ to them for working tirelessly: in trying to make sure that your church is properly administered; for encouraging your pastors; for helping them carry the load of ministry; and for ensuring that your church leaders are on track for proper ministry within your four walls and in your community? Many elders today still work a normal job, so while compensation may not be a factor, let me assure you that many hours, mostly stressful hours, are spent in steering the direction and ministry of your church. Friends let’s try to treat our pastors/elders with respect, in love, and through encouragement in every way possible. We all want the best pastor. Let’s do our part to help them feel like the best!

BLESSINGS WORTH NOTING: When we’re feeling appreciated and loved, we tend to put out our very best. We all want the ‘best’ pastor, so let’s do our best to make him feel like his best!

PRAYER BECAUSE OF THE IMPACT OF TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: Lord Jesus, please prompt us to be the product of what we desire for ourselves, with special emphasis on our biblical leaders who work diligently to help us know, or grow in, the Lord. Please bless our pastors and teachers in extraordinary ways so that they will please You in every way, while having a critical impact on our lives. Please Lord, work on us, Your servants, to bless our leaders so that they would be incented to do even more for Your kingdom, while also helping Christians mature in our faith and desire more and more victory in our work while here on earth, all for Your kingdom’s sake. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There’s another page on my website, entitled ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading or listening to this devotional, please go to this page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin or continue your walk with Jesus. If you would like to read more of my devotionals, or subscribe for a daily email containing each new devotional, please go online to NuggetsFromGodsWord.org. Go online to Apple Podcasts, or using the Apple Podcast app, simply search for Nuggets From God’s Word to hear more episodes, or click ‘Follow’ to be notified of Podcast updates. Please allow me to encourage you to find a church home near by your home and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Pastors, Workers and Servants Praise The Lord

On By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Church Leaders, Needs, Pastors, Praise, Recognize God, Servants of God, The Church, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED Wednesday, 2023-02-08
WRITTEN AT: O’Brien, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: Psalm 135:1-3
TRANSLATION: New International Version (NIV)

BIBLE TEXT: 1 Praise the Lord. Praise the name of the Lord; praise him, you servants of the Lord, 2 you who minister in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God. 3 Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good; sing praise to his name, for that is pleasant.

APPLICATION: I have never served as ‘Pastor’ of a local church, but I have filled many servant positions in the local church, so I can speak to the ways that I have seen where this has worked well and also stories from friends where this was a challenge. Before reading on, perhaps stop and have an internal discussion between you and God as to why the Psalmist may have seen importance in this, and because God saw need in having it be a part of His instructions to every generation, why does He see it as important for us. Friends, I firmly believe that in order for me to properly address this, I will need to borrow the words from 2 Chronicles 7:14, because I believe this may be the heart of our God for His people:

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Hopefully all church workers are ones who know God and call Him by name each and every day. But think carefully about this, dear ones, when thinking of ministry servants and leaders at your church. Hopefully this includes many in my readership. Remember, applying this personally, we should consider: If we know God personally; if we call Him by name; if we turn away from our wicked ways; if we seek His face, and we are not always after just His gifts to us; is there anything else that might prevent us from being on the same page as God and also hearing from Him? Think about the Sunday School teacher who stands in front of you on Sunday, and they have not done like the Psalmist said, or as was given to us in 2 Chronicles 7:14. Are they truly prepared to share from the depths of their heart relationship with God and the time spent in His Word that week? Could they sahre how we could truly incorporate such blessings into our lives in the following week? This is not picking on Sunday School teachers, because many churches are blessed with dedicated teachers who love the Lord and depend on Him each week in their obligation to fulfill their teaching role. But, just as the Psalmist shared, this example applies to all servants of the Most High God. If our pastors are not enjoying time together with the Lord and lifting up praise to Him in unison and in an effort to place the burden of their ‘sheep’ into the all-powerful hand of Almighty God, can we expect any better on Sunday morning when we show up and depend on them to help uplift our spirits and help us draw close to this God, that they themselves may not be close to? Few churches have choirs these days, but whether it’s a choir member, or a praise team member, if the spirit of our Holy God is not familiar in their hearts from a week of praising and drawing close to God, what is there that’s inside them to share with us on Sunday that would help draw us into worship? Pastors and teachers have an awesome responsibility to their members, and even as the Word says, it is not a position that one should desire. Instead, it must be one to which they are called to by God. In my almost 50 years of banking. If I spent most days doing everything else that was unassociated with my particular position, do you feel like I would have grown in my position? I feel like this is the same with our servants and leaders, and I feel that for all those who are not on the actual team, we have a deep responsibility to pray in earnest as we seek the face of Almighty God and beg His touch on our workers/servants/teachers/pastors of our churches. For what they have in them, from their week of experience and relationship with God, is what will be evident on Sunday morning when we get to church. Both the passage in Psalms today, and the one referenced in 2 Chronicles, apply to all of us. For although we may not have volunteered or been chosen as a named church leader, God chose us collectively in Matthew 28 when He commissioned us to go and tell the world about His saving grace and His love for all humanity. So, take from this today that we all should worship our Master every day, and never neglect humbling ourselves before God, praying, seeking His face, turning from our wicked ways, and watching for His mighty hand as He hears from Heaven and heals our land!

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Blessed be the name of Lord! The more we praise Him, the more joy will bubble from our hearts as we join with others in corporate worship!

PRAYER: So often we give the excuse that we just don’t have time for more activity in our lives, but I thank You Lord for teaching me that the truth of this whole matter is really that we will not give You the priority in our lives that You deserve. It’s easier for us to tell others it’s a matter of time, and then later sit with You in prayer and meditation and apologize for not making You a priority. Forgive us Lord. In the closing sentence of my ‘APPLICATION’ I named a few things that I believe Your Word made clear to my readers, listeners and I today. This can only come about if we commit ourselves to You with all our heart, soul and mind, and if we humble ourselves, pray and turn from our wicked ways. Please grant us Your power to accomplish Your will for us this day, so that we in turn we may honest, sincere and solid believers who will demonstrate Jesus in every word and action. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog might indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Church Leaders As Shepherds

On By Ed AlgreenIn Elders, Expectations, Leadership, PastorsLeave a comment

Wednesday, 2019-04-24

Bible Reference: 1 Peter 5:2–4
Translation: The Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Bible Text: Just as shepherds watch over their sheep, you must watch over everyone God has placed in your care. Do it willingly in order to please God, and not simply because you think you must. Let it be something you want to do, instead of something you do merely to make money. Don’t be bossy to those people who are in your care, but set an example for them. Then when Christ the Chief Shepherd returns, you will be given a crown that will never lose its glory.

OBSERVATION: If we hold a place of leadership in God’s church, then we have a responsibility to watch over those we lead with the same love and care that God has for us.

APPLICATION: We tend to expect a lot out of our pastors. In fact, we tend to think that they are invincible and not subject to the same sin and temptations that we encounter daily. Some translations tend to see this section of scripture addressed to elders, while some use more general terms of church leaders. I am not here to clarify either of these, but rather to remind us that if we hold a place of leadership in God’s church, then we have a responsibility to watch over those we lead with the same love and care that God has for us. We should not be in a place of leadership unless we could be a leader from a heart of love for the Lord and for His local church. We should have within us the desire to see the work of the Lord flourish – for His glory, therefore our work should be done unselfishly and with a heart to work for our master, not because of anything that we might personally gain from any position that we might hold. Most people learn better from what they are shown than from what they are told, therefore Peter warns that leaders are to lead by example rather than trying to throw around your authority. The super great news is that regardless whether we are ignored for our efforts in the work of the church here on earth, all we do for Jesus will be recognized by Him when we see Him face to face one day. In fact, Peter suggested that we would gain a crown that will never lose its glory! I could only imagine the smile on my Savior’s face as He welcomes me home and thanks me for returning the favor for what He did for me on Calvary, by all that I attempted to do to promote His kingdom while here on earth! Oh that will be, glory for me! Are you looking forward to this also friend? Please don’t shy away from the Lord’s work. There’s much to be done, and many to be reached with the gospel. Jesus used others to find us and bless us, now let’s make ourselves available for the work of the Lord. Yes, God can use even you and I for His glory!

PRAYER: Lord we work hard around our churches and sometimes we get discouraged because we feel unappreciated by church leaders and/or members. Thank You for using Your servant Peter to show us that our expectations are unimportant here on earth, for our efforts should always be directed towards pleasing the only One that we serve, our Lord and Savior! In fact I believe that most often when we expect glory here on earth, it could easily mean that we may not necessarily be doing kingdom work. May we be found faithful in all that we do for Your ultimate glory. May You be lifted higher when others recognize a benefit from our efforts here below. I ask these things in the name of the Lord that I adore, the Lord that I seek to please by all that I do here below, AMEN!

Careful To Keep Christ FIRST

On By Ed AlgreenIn Church Leaders, Leader, Pastors, Preach, Preaching, TeacherLeave a comment

Post Date:

 Wednesday, 2017-10-04
SCRIPTURE

From:

 John 3:24-26 (MSG)

Text:

  John’s disciples got into an argument with the establishment Jews over the nature of baptism. They came to John and said, “Rabbi, you know the one who was with you on the other side of the Jordan? The one you authorized with your witness? Well, he’s now competing with us. He’s baptizing, too, and everyone’s going to him instead of us.”
OBSERVATION:
In spite of John repeatedly saying that he was only the forerunner of Christ, his disciples and followers really got attached to him and trusted his ministry. So much so, that when Jesus came along – the One that John had spoken about often, John’s disciples got a little ‘bent out of shape’ and jealous of the following He was quickly getting. I am convinced that this still happens today, so let’s really examine this scripture…..
APPLICATION:
I have a friend pastor who received so many compliments over a new suit that he sported one Sunday, that he vowed never to wear it again in the pulpit, because he was convinced that more folk looked intently at what he was wearing than listening intently to what he said! At the time, we thought it was a little comical, but he was dead serious. That story compares to another pastor who posted on his pulpit the words “Oh that they see Jesus”. Friends, I don’t know that we think about this often enough, but the man who stands in front of us each week and shares the Word of God, is merely an instrument of God. We have a dire responsibility to pray for our pastor, that he would set self aside, and be open with unhindered attention to what God would say through him to us. Pastors know a lot about their parishioners, because we place a lot of faith in them and share our hearts and our concerns with them often. However, they have no wisdom or authority to ‘fix’ us. Only God knows the heart of man, and since we are His design, only He can mend a broken heart; open the eyes of the blind; and lead one from the ways of this world to the lifesaving, eternal benefits of eternity with Him in glory. Do we love our pastor? Without a doubt, and with all of our heart, but remember that he is much like John, for he is the forerunner of the soon coming, glorious Son of God, Jesus the Christ. Let us therefore love those that pastor us and teach us the truths of our glorious Savior, but let us really please them by loving their Master, their Savior and their glorious Lord who we must claim for our own so that we may one day join our pastors at the foot of the cross singing praises to our Lord!
PRAYER:
Lord Jesus, thank You for blessing us with great pastors, who have a lot of patience with us and show incredible love to us through their respective ministries here on earth. Please help us to honor them by looking to You, the Author and Finisher of our faith, and the One that they have chosen to preach and share every week. They’re our coaches, leading us towards the finish line where we will spend eternity with You, praise to Your wonderful and magnificent name, AMEN!
FOOTNOTE:
There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’.  If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

God Defends His Leaders

On By Ed AlgreenIn Church Leaders, Leader, Leadership, PastorsLeave a comment

Post Date:-

 Saturday, 2017-06-03
SCRIPTURE

From:

 Numbers 16:19-22 (TLB)

Text:

 19 Korah had stirred up the entire nation against Moses and Aaron, and they all assembled to watch. Then the glory of Jehovah appeared to all the people, 20 and Jehovah said to Moses and Aaron, 21 “Get away from these people so that I may instantly destroy them.”

22 But Moses and Aaron fell face downward to the ground before the Lord. “O God, the God of all mankind,” they pleaded, “must you be angry with all the people when one man sins?”
OBSERVATION:
Three Levites who had served in the temple, gathered 250 others to support their cause in going to Moses to question him about his leadership. Moses had no argument with them, but simply humbled himself before them and submitted to God’s decision and action against the leadership for their revolt to know for sure who would continue to lead the Israelites. I found it humbling when Moses and Aaron bowed before God the next morning at the entrance to the temple and they pleaded with God not to eliminate the whole bunch of the revolution gathered, just the one who stood defiant to the will of God. However it really upset God that sinful men were questioning His decision for leadership.
APPLICATION:
I believe that this story could be a sequel from one of many churches today. For members, or even attendees decide that there is something they don’t care for in their pastor, and they begin gossiping with others. This often leads to a revolution forming against the pastor. The church then becomes useless in ministry, because factions form against the pastor and the revolution quickly places their own sins aside and decides to track those of the pastor and those close to him. What if the God that we serve – the same God who stepped in against Korah and the Levites, decides to settle the issue once and for all on those who oppose His leadership for each of our churches? I wonder how many would fall into the instant sinkhole because they are fighting against the man of God, instead of praying for him; lifting him up with encouraging words; looking for ways to support him in all that God has placed on his heart for God’s people. Friends, it is one thing to know what happens to unbelievers, but for those who claim salvation while still acting like the world, and looking for ways to disrupt the work of the Lord, I dread to think of God’s actions for them when He has taken as much as He could out of their negative impact on His ministry. Friends, may I draw your attention to this whole chapter in Numbers so you could read for yourself, then allow God to minister to your heart about which side of the fence you are on. Are you for the ministry of Christ to the lost of our community through your local church, or are you doing and saying things that tear down and destroy the ministry. One option pleases God and He blesses you and the ministry. The other option destroys the ministry, discourages the worker/leader/pastor sent by God, and you are therefore warned through this study in Numbers, that the same destruction could be in store for you and all those you might encourage into your revolution. Allow God to be your guide and redirect you today, if needed.
PRAYER:
Lord, it is so unfortunate that many a good church has been destroyed by things very similar to the incident Moses faced with his very own temple workers. Should there be anyone guilty of such a revolution today that reads this devotional, please get their attention and work a miracle in their life. There are so many that needs salvation in our communities that our energies would be much more effective evangelizing rather than internal destruction of Your army. Please have Your precious will and way in our lives heavenly Father. AMEN!
FOOTNOTE:
There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’.  If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

Closed To The Message Of Christ?

On By Ed AlgreenIn Deliverer, Pastors, Preaching, TeacherLeave a comment

Post Date:

 Saturday, 2017-04-29
SCRIPTURE

From:

 Mark 6:1-3 (Voice)

Text:

 1 Jesus went back into His own hometown where He had grown up, and His disciples followed Him there. 2 When the Sabbath came, He went into the synagogue in Nazareth and began to teach as He had done elsewhere, and many of those who heard Him were astonished.

Those in the Synagogue: Where did He gain this wisdom? And what are all these stories we’ve been hearing about the signs and healings He’s performed? Where did He get that kind of power? 3 Isn’t this Jesus, the little boy we used to see in Joseph’s carpenter shop? Didn’t He grow up to be a carpenter just like His father? Isn’t He the son of Mary over there and the brother of James, Joses, Judas, Simon, and their sisters? Who does He think He is?

And when they had thought about it that way, they became indignant and closed themselves to His message.
OBSERVATION:
Jesus knew that in ministry we would face opposition, just as He faced when He ministered in the synagogue among the Pharisees. They closed themselves to His message’ and I’m afraid that this may be all to familiar to us today….
APPLICATION:
All the time we hear stories of people that don’t like church, or would rather not hear of our Lord, and this may often discourage us. However, had we not have been just as stubborn, we might struggle in overcoming the disappointment in trying to witness to those kind of friends. The struggle faced by the Pharisees was that the same Jesus who stood teaching them, was the same one born to their neighbor, or hometown friends. The same one who may have run around playing with their children. In fact the kid, whose brothers are known around all of the neighborhood circles. Some of us might have similar experiences, where one of our own have returned from seminary to minister among us. Are you accepting of them? When one has been radically changed and returns to minister to you, are you accepting of them, or do you struggle to see beyond their past? Would you have been able to accept the apostle Paul, after all he did in his life before Christ as Saul? Friends, God changes things, and He also changes people way beyond anything we can do for ourselves, or anything we could imagine. Please remember that when we pray for our pastor and teachers that God might speak through them to us, we must look beyond the inabilities of the man standing before us and look to the God who created this world and each of us. The God who gave His all for our eternal appointment with He and His Father in heaven. It’s not about us, or the man who stands in the pulpit, but its about the Master who has a word to share with us, encourage us with and/or direct us towards. Please don’t allow anything to close your mind to what our God has to share with you.
PRAYER:
Lord, thank You for loving us enough to accept our plea for forgiveness. So often we allow the vices of Satan to affect us and distract our listening to You God and the blessings that You have in store for us. Please forgive us for allowing the forest to blind our vision from the awesome blessings You have in store up ahead for us. Thank You for still radically changing the hearts of mankind and using even the most challenging ones to declare the kingdom of God to us, so that we might otherwise turn our eyes to the Savior of this world. Please continue to minister among us so that all may come to a saving knowledge of the Master. AMEN
FOOTNOTE:
There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’.  If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

With Hearts of Worship, We…

On By Ed AlgreenIn Imitator of Christ, Pastors, Witness, WorshipLeave a comment

Post Date:

 Tuesday, 2017-04-18
SCRIPTURE

From:

 Mark 3:1-2 (Voice)

Text:

 1 On the Sabbath, Jesus had come into a synagogue where He saw a man with a withered hand.2  The Pharisees held their breath: would Jesus cure this man on the Sabbath, right there in front of everyone? If so, they could charge Him with breaking the Sabbath law.
OBSERVATION:
It is interesting to see how evil the leaders (the Pharisees) of one religious sect (the Jews) could be, and how persistent they could be about trapping the leader (Jesus) of another sect (Christians). Why it was becoming a threat to their longstanding beliefs and practices. Aren’t you happy that those practices were all due to the immaturity, prejudices and hatred of that day? Or were they?….
APPLICATION:
I have always remembered the words of a tour guide that took my family and I through Fort Charlotte, in the Bahamas. He showed us, and explained to us, how the stretch chamber was used when the British soldiers wanted to force the captured pirates to talk. His words still echo in my mind: “sure glad I wasn’t born in those days. ha, ha, ha”! Those words came to mind as I read these verses, because I’m afraid that many of us sit innocent in our church services and really criticize the Jews for being so awful to Jesus. And while I could agree with you, I believe we often ignore how much of that attitude we still bring to our churches today. Having just celebrated Easter and our risen Lord, our hearts are probably still overflowing with thanksgiving after being reminded about all that Jesus did for us at Calvary. We probably celebrated in worship more this past weekend than we have in a long time. But how is it going for most of you after being back in the workforce for a part of the week? I realize that for most of us, we could easily get defensive about how precious our own churches are, but friends I would encourage you to pray a hedge of protection around your pastor(s) and teachers, for Satan is out to attack them in much the same way as the Pharisees did to Jesus. In fact, many of them have probably received way more emails, letters and/or visits to criticize the efforts of Resurrection Sunday than to thank them and encourage them for their efforts amidst family visiting with them and the normal day-to-day pressures of pastoring. Can you imagine the awe of what our worship times together could be, if we:

  • Prepared our hearts for worship by asking God to remove the busyness of the week from our minds so that we could concentrate on Him, if only during our designated times of worship;
  • Support and uphold our pastor(s) and teachers, by praying that God will find them to be usable vessels through which He could minister to us;
  • Pray that those that we love, and have invited to church, will stop the excuses and actually show up, so that they might be encouraged and hear a word from the Lord;
  • Pray for, and try to encourage a few people in attendance, for many are struggling with personal issues, and enormous pressure from Satan to turn away from God;
  • Reflect personally on the awesome worthiness of God, and how truly needy we are when stacked up against His awesome worth. Prepare to celebrate this with other believers of like mind;

Friends, I truly believe that when we prepare our hearts like this, we will find less time and importance in seeking out the bad in our pastor and church leaders, and the hypocrite sitting two rows in front of us, and instead this will lead us to open the doors of heaven and seek Jesus for who He is, and ask for His perfection in our lives so that we might be usable vessels in His earthly ministry. You see, there’s way too much need personally, than to waste our time trying to be God and judge everyone around us. That’s not a part of worship to our heavenly Father.
PRAYER:
Dear Lord Jesus, please humble our hearts so that we might seek Your perfection in our lives. Please humble us to serve You and others instead of waiting to be catered to in all walks of life. Help us to imitate You in all walks of life, so that others might be reminded of You, Your character, love and godliness. ‘People need the Lord’, oh that we might encourage and provoke that desire into reality, rather than being a stumbling block that might turn them away forever. You’re in control of us dear Jesus, and You control those around us, please help us to communicate with You about the needs that we see, rather than trying to invoke our own ideologies on the needy that we come into contact with. May it be obvious to others today, whose we are! AMEN!
FOOTNOTE:
There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’.  If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

Be Encouragers of God’s Messengers

On By Ed AlgreenIn Encourager, PastorsLeave a comment

The Holy Bible (The Contemporary English Version – 1 Thessalonians 2:2-6): God gave us the courage to tell you the good news about him, even though many people caused us trouble. 3 We didn’t have any hidden motives when we won you over, and we didn’t try to fool or trick anyone. 4 God was pleased to trust us with his message. We didn’t speak to please people, but to please God who knows our motives. 5 You also know that we didn’t try to flatter anyone. God himself knows that what we did wasn’t a cover-up for greed. 6 We were not trying to get you or anyone else to praise us.

Thoughts: I believe that when one does a job in spite of opposition, or in spite of whining and complaining by those they are trying to help, then we should appreciate that they are specially called for that job, and they are therefore working as a result of their obligation to a higher calling. This is what we see in this message by Paul, and if we are real honest, this is what we see in our pastors and teachers at our local churches. Although they may never openly complain, I believe that our pastors face a lot of correction, ideas, suggestions and self-proclaimed righteousness from their congregations to whom they preach and teach. Please don’t get me wrong friends, I believe pastors welcome your constructive input, because it helps to show them that you were listening and indeed care enough to correct them or encourage them with your words. But let’s try to be careful to be encouragers, and not on the list of ‘trouble makers’ or ‘opposers’ to the gospel. When our pastors have the freedom to share the unfiltered Word of God with us, then perhaps we can hear directly from God. If they have to speak in parables to make sure they don’t hurt the feelings of some, then many of us will totally miss the point! Paul shared that he had no other motive than to see Jesus accepted and God magnified and lifted up by the folk he was ministering to. I believe that we still have men of God who endeavors to do this through their preaching, teaching and actions in their life. I hope that even today we can commit to aiding these gentlemen – these men of God, to be transparent in what God wants to say to us through them, and not be hindered by us in any way. I was taught many years ago that each of us might mess up at times, but let’s learn to look at the heart and see what the other brother’s heart might be. Many times we will be convinced that although he may have said something differently to what we would have said, his intent was to help and/or to magnify God. So where do you best fit in this scenario today: Encourager; Opposer or just don’t listen close enough to care? I believe God wants us to all be encouragers, and we can do this through an encouraging word to our pastors and/or teachers, or we can pray for God’s ongoing hand upon them as they surrender to Him and try to share His Word with us. Let’s commit to improving our stance, so that our pastors might be improved in their walk and their talk!

Prayer: Lord, You have indeed blessed us with great messengers who sacrifice daily so that they might share Your heart and Your will with us. I sincerely thank You for my pastors and teachers and I pray that they might be even more energized by Your touch on their lives today. May they be drawn so close to Your bosom today that they might be reassured of Your love and Your direction for them as they lead us. May they receive a fresh anointing of Your divine Holy Spirit so that as they stand before us this weekend we may hear the unfiltered Word of God and not have to guess what You are trying to say to us through them. May our pastors have the freedom to be transparent in what You might need to say to us through them, is my humble and sincere prayer that I ask in Your precious name, with thanksgiving. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to blogger.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, Sebring, FL! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!