Now is not the most comforting time to be a senior adult anywhere in the world. We are painfully aware that the elderly are vulnerable to the Covid-19 sickness - not only to become infected but also to have negative outcomes. That said, we who are not yet in our golden years have the opportunity to reassure the elderly of our concern through biblical truth and Christian love.
Those Who Despair of Living At times, those who are advanced in age despair of living and even think fondly of a disease that might lead them, at long last, to their eternal home. I have had some who felt this way in my first church, and I have encountered this thinking as recently as the past 72 hours with regard to the Coronavirus. Here are some biblical truths to help reassure these folks:
Some have said they believe the Coronavirus was lab-created for the purpose of taking out the elderly. I have heard this. Others say that they are disturbed by the younger generations taking a "not my problem" approach to the situation. Whether conspiratorial or not, elderly people who feel threatened by the Covid-19 pandemic need our love and concern. We are to honor our fathers and our mothers. We are to love our neighbors as ourselves. Understand this also, one day, you may be 70, 80, or 90. What level of attention and love would you like to receive? Sow those seeds today that you may reap them when it is your turn. Do you have your own ideas of how we can reassure the elderly in this difficult time? Please drop a comment below. Thank you!
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I was privileged to grow up under the ministry of probably the greatest visionary I have ever personally known. His name was Dr. Bradley Price, and he came to Northside Baptist in Charlotte in 1990. The Charlotte Observer reported on our big days at Northside, where 8,000 people would gather for the Spirit of Christmas service and receive a hot-cooked free meal. Through my experiences with Dr. Price as a child, a youth, one called to ministry, and then a ministry intern, glory to God, I caught from him the passion for and ability to dream, to crystallize a vision, and to inspire others to see the dream also.
I just sort of thought everyone had that same passion and ability. One day, I was sitting in a circle of pastors, and we were picking each other's brains for ideas and supporting one another in prayer. One of my pastoral brothers asked, "Can anyone help me develop a vision for my church? I've never been taught how to do that." If a pink elephant had jumped up on the desk, I may not have been more surprised. I just thought everyone knew this. Over the years, I have come to learn that the ability to "see" a vision for an organization, for a church, for a people, for a community and region, is something that is caught. Sure, you can go out and buy Andy Stanley's book and others, but translating principles into practice is easier said than done. Therefore, when it comes to recruiting and identifying leaders, and also hiring staff, look for those who demonstrate the ability to dream, to cast vision, and to build consensus around the dream. I'm blessed that my Assistant Pastor has this ability, and, Lord willing, the successful candidate for the next pastoral position we fill will have it also. Not long ago, I was speaking with a minister whose organization is thinking about buying our church property which is for sale. As we talked together, it struck me. This man has the ability to develop a vision. It had been a long while since I had talked with someone in ministry with that ability, and it was so refreshing. Such people are cut out of a little bit different cloth, it seems. And if you have this ability, mentor others, so that they can catch it also. What are some reasons that people give to your church? To be sure, there are the obvious reasons. Many of your givers probably feel compelled to give out of obedience to commands in Scripture to tithe; "it is the right thing to do," they will say. Some may give from the perspective that they are, in a sense, purchasing certain rights - rights to vote, to use the fellowship hall, to exert influence upon the church in some way. You may have some who give out of a cheerful heart, not out of compulsion, but simply out of appreciation for the work of the Lord in their lives. These probably have been blessed through the ministry of your church, and they believe in your mission. They want to see others blessed in that very same way. So what's the trend, and why is it dangerous?
Have you ever seen someone stop giving abruptly over a disagreement or something similar? You only visited them eight out of the nine days they were in the hospital, or you hired a candidate that they voted against. It could be something far less significant. I smile as I write this, because if you are in church leadership, I don't have to ask. I know you have run into this. Some people will level the accusation that you only visit them or care about them, because you want their money. The trend here would be giving for the wrong reasons. And the reason it is dangerous is that we develop elaborate budgets on a projected contribution number. If that contribution number is susceptible to inaccurate impressions, your church can be in for a rocky road. All it takes is one mouth in your church to go visit everyone and convince them to withhold their tithe or that the church only cares about them insofar as they can fund the church's work. You may wonder what can be done about this? Here are a few suggestions.
I remember so well when "Mr. Bud," who chaired the building maintenance committee in my first pastorate, told me "Pastor Billy, I know hate is a strong word. But I hate that word 'maintenance.'" He would tell me this enough times that he made me think. To Mr. Bud, we should not just maintain our buildings; we should pursue a level of excellence and future preparedness.
Churches are discovering the beauty of investing more of their funds into ministry versus real estate, property ownership, and building maintenance. But for the majority of us, we still have facilities on our balance sheet. And we, as pastors, understand that the church is not a building, even if some of the dear folks we shepherd aren't quite there yet. Churches and ministries have a tendency, though, to neglect their buildings. In our defense, we are often cash-strapped, and it takes significant cash to keep up a building. I know of several ministries that were almost forced out of existence, though, due to a failure to keep up their property. The church where I currently serve is relocating. Admittedly, a big reason why relocation became our only reasonable path forward was decades of letting things go. So what's the answer? God began to put on my heart a shift in mindset when it comes to building upkeep. With a nod to "Mr. Bud," I have changed the name of our Building & Grounds Maintenance Team to Facility / Property Stewardship Team. As Mr. Bud said, we are not maintaining a building or piece of property; we are stewards of these things. I like the fact that this perspective underscores the spiritual nature of the decisions we make concerning our property. Also, instead of doing the very cheapest thing to band-aid a problem, we will consider doing it right the first time, even if it takes more money, to avoid having to redo it. When we relocate, by God's grace, we will be building a new building. It will be warrantied, efficient, and new. To keep it nice, it will serve us well to think of our responsibility as building stewardship versus building maintenance. Building Maintenance: Let's get someone to fix the leak for free, maybe a church member. Building Stewardship: Let's get a credentialed contractor to fix the leak, and advise us as to any underlying issues that may cause this leak to recur. Building Maintenance: Let's take ceiling tiles from the kids Sunday School classrooms to fix the damaged ones in the Sanctuary. Building Stewardship: We don't need unfinished construction in kids Sunday School classrooms. Let's purchase new ceiling tiles, and do it right. P. S. If you cannot afford to be a good steward of your building, maybe it is time to apply for a grant or liquidate your real estate and go mobile. Visible cracks, peeled paint, rusted out doors, and pest control problems say more about your theology than they do about your frugality. Of course, these ideas are most applicable to churches in the States. In a missions context, the particulars would likely be different. Throughout the Bible, we find instances where God instructed people to do things that did not make sense to them. God tells Abraham to offer Isaac as a burnt offering in Genesis 22, even though Isaac was the child of promise, the son through whom Abraham would become father of a great multitude. (Hebrews 11:19 tells us how Abraham reconciled this in his own mind.) God tells the children of Israel to march around Jericho once a day for six days and seven times on the seventh day. This would lead to the collapse of the city's fortification. Jesus told His disciples, who had toiled all night out on the sea as experienced fishermen, to cast their nets on the other side of the boat. This led to (likely) the most voluminous catch of their careers. There is almost a pattern here where God instructs His people to do something that doesn't make sense to them and (this is key) requires faith as evidenced by their obedience.
Earlier in my ministry, I taught that God did this, because He operated outside of logic. The scaffolding of my teaching was not awful, but my language was imprecise. I began to struggle with the idea that God, who created logic, who is not the author of confusion, would be illogical. By no means do I suggest that God cannot suspend the principles of logic just as He does the laws of the physical realm to accomplish His purpose. I just felt there was something here that I was missing. Bible study led me to this clarification. God is indeed an intensely logical God. Information has a significant bearing on what is logical. Can one boy's lunch feed 5,000 people? Ordinarily, no; it cannot. But if you have the ability to multiply it and if you know that you intend to do so, then yes, it can. This information about God's power and plan - known at that time only to God Himself - makes all the difference. In 2 Kings 6, Elisha and his right hand man are surrounded by the chariots and horses of the king of Syria. However, the LORD opened the eyes of Elisha's servant, and he was able to see that those who were with him and Elisha were greater than those who were against them. Information made the difference between what was logical and what was not logical. The principle is this. God gives us instruction to follow in faith, at times, with incomplete information. We are to depend on God. His ways are higher; his thoughts are higher. Why? For one thing, because He has all knowledge. You cannot add information to Him. Therefore, His logic is supreme. It doesn't mean that He is not a logical God; it just means that He has more information. Therefore, His logic is superior. We should therefore trust Him and obey His instruction in faith. |
AuthorPastor Billy Shaw is a full-time pastor, husband, and father with a passion for helping other pastors. Archives
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