I have a great question that was posed on the blog I would like to share. It truly gets at the heart of decision making when we put ourselves in a place we believe God has called us to. I am including my answer to the question, please feel free to help out on this one...
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Here is the comment/question... Yes, I do think God may call us to dead churches. But will He call us to allow or families to be buried alive under the influence of that church?
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Here is my response.... I can't speak for you and your circumstances but this is a great question. Many times God has called others to the brink of harm, Abraham and Isaac, Job and his children, Peter and John even Jesus himself. I do not mean to imply that this "martyr" mentality be our guide. What I am saying is that when we are following God's plan, even the deadliest of areas have no real threat to our security in Christ. For me, I have caused harm to those come to me sometimes by trying to do things that were not Scriptural, (sincere and seemed like the right thing to do) therefore could not be called of God, and had to make reconciliation with those I have hurt.
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If you have a particular area in mind it would be good to bathe this decision in prayer, scripture and Godly counsel from others. In closing, let me try to give you some helpful things to do when faced with a big decision.
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...First, make sure your own life is currently in fellowship with Jesus. This requires us to "take the beam out of our own eye" as Jesus said in Matthew 7. Many try to fix others or lead others without taking needed time to clear out our own fleshly struggles.
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...Second, do not take scripture and just say "I've found the answer." The possibility that God would call someone to sacrifice their child (Isaac) two times in scripture to prove his trust in a foundational promise to a man whose lineage would become a nation is pretty rare. As a matter of face, God does not repeat that scenario in scripture again. Be careful on just jumping to conclusions without study of the word and prayer.
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...Last, if you have not sought wise counsel from others, then you are short circuiting God's plan to "sharpen iron" (Prov. 27:17). A note on seeking counsel from others. You should speak to three different types (not three people per se) of "counsel". Choose a person who has your walk with the Lord at the heart of your friendship. Choose another person who is not involved with nothing to lose from the decision you are making. Then choose a person who is totally outside of all the stuff, maybe even an acquaintance, who has a Godly reputation. This last person could be a leader from another church.I pray that you have read this info and would love to hear personally from you if I can be of any help.
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Ok Blog fans, if you have any help, let's hear it. All I ask is that you understand this is a time for edification not complication...
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Rabbits and Snails are on the way...
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Till next time...
1 comment:
We have to keep in mind that the first ministry we are accountible for is to our families. The familily was the first institution created by God and throughout Scripture we have instructions on how we should raise and love our children and love our spouses. One of the requirements for church leadership is to have your house in order (paraphrased). If you are not taking care of matters at home, I don't believe God will be calling you to serve elsewhere. The spiritual condition of the church will be no different then the spirtual condition of its members! God's design for the family was for it to function in harmony according to scripture: Children obey your parents; Fathers do not frustrate your children; do not hold back correction; Husbands love your wives; wives be in agreement with your husbands and so on. The reason God put this prerequisite of obedience to the family for church leaders was to show you how faithful they would be in the leadership of the church. So my advise to the question regarding putting one's family at risk is this: None of us knows what tomorrow holds. The only thing we can be sure of is that God does and he works everything out according to his will and it is always best to be found faithful and obedient. We are the tools in the hands of a master craftsman who knows how to best use us. Remember the first commandment. "Thou shall have no other gods beside me". This includes our families. Trust God, minister at home and then serve where God calls you.
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