From the Pastor’s Heart…
January 31, 2011

Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Lean not upon your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path.”

Many of you know that this is the life verse that Joyce and I have had since before we met, but I’m not sure how many of you know the reason.

When we chose to spend the first 20 years of our marriage in ‘fractured church’ ministry, we knew that we would be faced with all of the normal discouragements, problems and issues of life. We knew that God would never disappoint us, but people often would. We also knew that we would be faced with a greater degree of pain, dealing with churches and people who had been hurt, filled with bitterness and were ready to give up.

Satan often seeks to deter people from following Christ by persuading them to believe that Christianity isn’t worth it…. That people will never change. They will always hurt you. The sacrifice just isn’t worth the effort. It is too tiring.

I have found that the problem lies in not accepting all the Jesus has to offer. I know this personally and experientially. Too many people attempt to serve Him in bits and pieces, or only where it feels good, or only where there is recognition. In dealing with this in our own lives, and in dealing with those kinds of people that are found in every church body, Joyce and I would find ourselves discouraged and frustrated and crying out to God for help as we were so often ready to quit.

So we would turn to this precious verse. Trust. Lean. Acknowledge. The greatest minds combined are but a grain of sand in His presence. There is no better life to examine than His; there is no better path to pursue than that which follows in His steps. For He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and is therefore the answer to all of our problems, no matter what anyone else chooses to do or to say.

Those who blame God for their failures and those that blamed us (or you) are only looking for an excuse to justify their sin of unbelief. After all, failure to live up to God’s expectations is not God’s failure. It is the result of a decision to follow another voice. Do not make the mistake of pursuing such a path, but follow God instead, despite all odds or opposition or disappointment…, and you will discover that you have all that you need to live a satisfying life in Christ. He will direct your path.

It is a joy to be your pastor.