TFC

A Three Fold Cord

When is it not good to be alone as an Independent Baptist Pastor?

Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up. Again, if two lie together, then they have heat: but how can one be warm alone? And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken. (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)

When you have the opportunity to have more than one! The Book of Genesis reminds us that it is not good to be alone, but often Pastors consider it a strength to fight their spiritual battles alone. I am thankful for those who have been, and continue to be, an encouragement in my life! Praise the Lord that God places like-minded people in our lives to be a help in times of need. Life is, also, much more enjoyable when we can share our joys and celebrations with friends! Maybe we should call ourselves Interdependent Baptists from now on!

Do It With Joy

Just A Thought

Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
(Hebrews 13:17)

I have not written lately, but I would like to share with you what I shared with our church leaders last night. We were discussing how to enlist/recruit workers to their ministry teams, which seems to be one of the most difficult task for leaders, from my experience. Sometimes we feel that it is just easier to do it ourselves, or if you want it done right, you might as well just do it yourself. But this style of leadership tends to burn us out, and it also pushes good people away. Since we are so busy doing the work, and may have a bad attitude and feel that the work is grievous, others assume that they do not have anything to offer, or that we do not trust them to get the job done correctly.

Take a minute today to think about your style of leadership. Are you drawing people closer to you and to the work of the ministry, or are you pushing people away? May we be equippng people so we, and our ministry team, will faithfully serve Jesus, and do it with joy!

The Difference Between Young Men & Old Men

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: (Joel 2:28)

For years my family would gather each Summer and spend a few days in the hills of North Carolina to enjoy the Wilcox Family Reunion. The old codgers would gather together and tell stories of the good ol' days. To me those events could be called just about anything, but good would not be one of the descriptions! (Though my family's roots go back to the country, my life has been fully entrenched in the suburbs and I gladly take the title of "city slicker".) I would also see my cousins getting together. When we were younger, we would gather for games of football or other competitive activities. As we got older, some would take off in their cars and find out what was happening down in the hollers of Lenoir. When we all became adults it seemed that most of the guys would get together and talk about their work.

This was interesting to me. The older guys would sit on the porch and talk about the past, while the younger guys would gather together and discuss the future. Isn't that what Joel 2 states would be the case? The older guys are more worn out than the younger guys and they enjoy stopping for a few minutes to reminisce about some of the events from years gone by. They have seen a lot of things in their years on this earth and tend to be more cynical about the future. Change might be made and then again, maybe it won't. The old men view what is important from different standards than the younger guys. Most of their stories center around people instead of the great things that they have accomplished. These seniors have their priorities established much better than the young bucks. Boy, can they tell some good stories!

When the young men get together, they discuss how they are going to become a success, and if they already have, they are more apt to look down on you since you haven't arrived. While the old men are dreaming dreams of a bygone era, the energy that the next generation has, allows them to see visions. Their discernment has not been sharpened like their parents, but they do have a strong desire to get something done and make a difference in this world!

As I look around at the group of pastors that God has given to the Virginia Baptist Bible Fellowship, I see the same thing. We have a discerning group of pastors who are my seniors. They have been through much of what I have not. When they discuss the good ol' days, it doesn't always sound so good. They have sacrificed so I could enjoy the fruit of their labor. But at times this group can become cynical and say things like the congregation I pastor, "We've never done it this way before!!" God has given me energy and vision and I am excited to be a part of something that can make a difference for eternity! Maybe at times my vision is lacking the "know how" that only experience can give us. At other times some of us young pastors have taken the baton and ran ahead too quickly. Conservative Baptists are almost always more traditional, than cutting edge. (It appears to me that you can't be conservative and cutting edge anymore than you can be a Republican and agree with Hillary Clinton.)

It apears at times our fellowship meetings are a lot like my family reunions. One group is sitting over on the porch talking about the past and then we see a group energetic renegades wanting to change everything around them. Sometimes both groups are eyeing the other in distrust thinking the other is either outdated or immature. What would happen if the old folks shared some of their discernment with the next generation? What would it be like if the younger pastors shared their energy, vitality and vision with their seniors in a way that they felt respected and appreciated? The old men receiving new strength and the young men accepting some better judgment! One thing that 14 years of experience working with pastors has shown me is that we may never know!

Regular Ministry Problems!

Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect. (Hebrews 11:35-40)


Not long ago, I attended a seminar and met another pastor named Jimmy. I met Jimmy during a prayer time at the invitation. While I was singing a verse of invitation, God began speaking to my heart about praying for the man standing beside me. I told God that I was sure this pastor would think I considered myself superior to him if I offered to pray with him, but God was not convinced. I bargained with God and told Him that if another verse of invitation was played, I would ask this man if I could pray with him. Since the invitation had already gone long, I felt pretty comfortable, until the next verse of the song began to play. At that point I told the Lord how crazy it was of me to not be willing to pray with another individual, especially another pastor.

I put my hand on this man’s shoulder and asked him if there was anything that I could pray with him about. He looked at me with tears in his eyes and with a refreshing countenance that simply stated, “Thanks for caring”, and said these words to me, “Just regular ministry problems”. I said to him that I knew what he meant and took his hand to pray with him. Later he introduced himself to me as Jimmy and I also was able to meet his wife. Throughout the rest of the conference, every time Jimmy walked by me, he just looked at me and smiled.

Later I got to thinking about what Jimmy said to me, “Just regular ministry problems”. I thought back to Bible times when men would be sent to jail, tortured or martyred. Regular ministry problems for the Apostle Paul were running away from town leaders to save his neck. He would face shipwreck and go without food as he shared the good news with unreached people groups. Throughout history we see the same type of things happening to our Baptist forefathers. But the regular ministry problems of today are quite different. Most problems today do not stem from the lost outside the church but from those inside the church. The ones that can’t get along with others. The ones that criticize our leadership. Those who would rather tell some bad news about someone instead of telling the good news of Jesus Christ.

Boy, haven’t times changed! Let’s do our best to be an encouragement to other pastors and even the members of our churches that cause the Regular Ministry Problems!

J.O.Y.

Growing up in an Independent Fundamental Baptist church there are several things that I learned. One was that the Bible is true, therefore there is a Heaven to gain and a Hell to shun. God is holy, He is to be feared and reverenced, and He also wants to have a personal relationship with me.

I also learned that if you don't smoke, drink or chew or go with girls that do, you probably are a pretty good Christian. Though I am being sarcastic, the reality was that being a good Christian seemed to entail a list of do's and don'ts. As long as you followed that list, it was OK to be involved with most anything else. Sad to say, many that spoke the loudest about following these standards, ended up in some kind of immoral situation that did far more harm than the hair styles, clothes styles or the type of music that was listened to.

While reading my Bible last night, I came across several verses about striving over issues that do not profit anyone. I was reminded about the churches gathering in Acts 15 and the conclusions that they came to. Notice the list of do's and don'ts that they came up with:


But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood. (Acts 15:20)

I haven't come across any lists like that lately, but it is interesting to notice what the key issues were for these early churches;

1. No Idols - That would be loving God over everything else.
2. No Sexual Sin - That would be focusing on the right kind of human relationships.
3. Refraining From Unhealthy Foods - That would be caring properly for yourself.

This is exactly what God commands of each one of us in The Great Commandment. We are to make God our priority, then place others as more important than ourselves, and last of all to be concerned about our own needs. JESUS - OTHERS - YOU is the acrostic that gives us J.O.Y.

US AGAINST THEM

Just a thought

For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal? (1 Corinthians 3:4)

Us & Them: Recently while watching the confirmation hearings of Justice Alito I was reminded of the partisanship that is so strong in our country. Both parties have strongly held beliefs of what is most important to them and supposedly the country. It is a wonderful process of free speech and positive tension that holds our country and it's leaders in check. It is also somewhat of a sad event for me to watch. The greatest country in the world publicly arguing over matters; some important, while others are trivial. There is certainly a sense of "us against them". Gratefully, at the end of the day, and especially during times of crisis, we are all simply Americans!

We also see the "us against them" mentality in the annual Army-Navy Game. This brutal competition between the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York (Army) and United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland (Navy) is one of the most traditional and enduring rivalries in sports. Last years win by Navy gave them their 50th victory. Though both teams battlecry is "Beat Army" or "Beat Navy" at the end of the game both teams stand together as their alma maters are played showing mutual respect and solidarity.

Many early believers had a problem with the us and them mentality, too. The church of Corinth seemed to focus on what made them different over what united them. One followed Paul’s model of ministry while another looked to Apollos. Now it appears that God was not against their unique methods. But He was against their divisive actions. Ultimately Paul took these believers back to Christ, Who is the rallying point for everyone of us. I am thankful for our National President, Pastor Bill Monroe, who has kept his focus on the 20 Articles of the Faith, the DNA that holds us all together.

Emotional Ups and Downs

Just A Thought

Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. (Romans 12:15)

Fridays are great days for most people. TGIF is cheered as many have completed their hard work and are ready to relax. Weekends are what our society lives for! And with the hectic schedule that so may lead, they deserve a break. When a pastor thinks of Friday, it seems his thoughts can be quite different. This is when things start really picking up for ministry. People have needs and often weekends are the time that meeting those needs takes place. This is wonderful for a pastor! His calling is to shepherd and comfort and counsel. His passion is to care for the flock that God has placed in his care. And as exciting as this is, it can be a very draining task.

Recently I was sharing with someone about ministry and stated that one of the reasons ministry is so challenging is because of the tremendous highs and lows that the ministry offers. God calls all Christians to rejoice and weep with others, but this is especially true for the pastor. We could be involved in a wedding ceremony in one part of the day and be conducting a funeral service later in the day. Someone may call us and share with us the wonderful things that God is doing in their life then later we receive a phone call about a serious illness or a family facing severe relational problems. The great highs and lows of ministry can be very draining to our emotions. Certainly God calls us to cast our cares upon Him and to wait on Him to keep from becoming weary, but most of us can face physical and emotional weariness at one time or another. As one pastor told me, "I am not tired of the work, but I do get tired in the work."

As you think of your weekend coming up, thank God for the opportunities to serve. Pastors would not be able to fulfill their calling if people did not have needs! Enjoy the wonderful blessings and enter into the trials of those God has placed in your midst, fulfill His plan as you use your heart, emotions and feelings to theire fullest extent! Thank God that you can have joy and that you can shed a tear, maybe in the same day or even in the same hour.