Shut up and Think

I once heard that there are some people who have "diarrhea of the mouth"! Wow, how true!
And, yes, "WE" all have had this problem at least once!

Fridays are supposed to be my "off" day-- if there is any such thing as an off day being a pastor! I was on my way to the beautiful Little Red River nestled in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains to do some fly fishing which has got to be the most enjoyable and restful sport ever! Apologies to you golfers. While driving, I was listening to the radio and this guy who was a guest on Dr. Dobson's broadcast was speaking about the "prodigals". In the middle of his message I recieved a text so I turned the volume down on the radio to make a phone call. When I finished the call, I resumed listening to this message! Perfect timing. Although I missed the introduction to this wonderful story, I heard the important part.

A pastor of a church had been bringing in the "nobodies" to his local church. One day a lady in the church came to him saying, "Pastor you are destroying our church. We have always had this good place of worship and fellowship and now all these people that don't fit and make it very uncomfortable are invading our quaint little atmosphere"! (paraphrasing, but real close) Most of us, if in this pastors shoes, would call the fire of God down on this woman's head and give her lots of Biblical proof that Jesus would have the same people following His ministry! Instead, he turns too her in a gentle voice and says to her, "Your right" and then asks her, "What should we do about it?" then asks her if she would help by disciplining some of the ladies! This lady became a great help to this church.

Proverbs 15:1 says: "a soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger".

You have to understand that if someone has the courage too come to you and criticize what you are doing--when you and most everyone else know its the right thing--you can bet that person (whoever they are) has thought it through, weighed the consequences and is prepared to take on your response!! Further more, they are ready for a fight! This is where you need to"shut up and think"!

I once heard it said, "Wisdom is knowing what to say and when to say it"! The next time you are challenged by someone with "diarrhea of the mouth" stop and say too yourself, "This is a good time to build a bridge and mend a heart!" Give it a try. You'll never know if it works unless you give it a try!!

Why?

Why is it that 20 percent of the church does 80 percent of the work?

Well, I am sure there are many answers out there! Some would refrain from service because they are not sure where they fit or they may feel that they are void of a gift or talent!

Lately I have been preaching/teaching about spiritual gifts in our church. And yes it is true that many will not, "step up to the plate", because they are not sure of their calling! This is no doubt why we are exhorted to, "make our calling and election sure".

Now let me tell you one of the biggest reasons why I think 20 percent of the people are doing 80 percent of the work. Identity Crisis!

Yes, many have no real concept of the price that was paid for their SIN on Calvary! Yes, SIN!! And because of this, "Sin" issue we have an epidemic of condemnation that is sweeping people away from the church and especially away from service in the church!

Now let me make it clear we are called to live Holy lives! We are called to love Jesus with all our hearts! And yes we blow it sometimes, and sometimes we even, yes, SIN! This is why Jesus came and poured out His blood on Calvary, because you and I had a great need, a need that we were unable to meet. A life of perfection that we could not hold to. Find your identity in Jesus, keep your hope in His blood, in which God says He is satisfied, and keep yourself in His house and serve Him with all your heart!