You may not understand that statement fully so let me explain. Sometimes God allows things that shouldn't become so heavy to gain weight so that He can get our attention. It's not always easy to know what God wants, but after a few years you begin to understand when He is speaking to you.
A pastor has to make decisions based on what he or she hears from the Lord. They are not always easy decisions to make because you know that people in your congregation don't always understand why. I guess that's the problem most pastors are facing today. Everybody is happy with stuff being the same whether it's working or not. I've been told by more than one person don't rock the boat, but when you feel you are on a sinking ship something has to change.
God has placed a heavy burden on me for my church. God sent me here 21 months ago and I have fought the enemy ever since accepting this challenge. I've got some great people that love God, but I have some that don't really care if the church grows or changes at all. I have preached until my breath has given out and it hasn't changed much of the atmosphere. I have cried to God for direction and this past Wednesday I believe I heard from the Lord. God spoke to my spirit, "Pray".
I had a month of prayer last year and ended up dealing with a problem in the church that put me in the hospital and caused a division in my church. It almost cost a young minister his calling because of lies that were being told on him. So when the Lord said, "Pray", I thought, "The last time I heard that all hell broke loose around me." But I am convinced even more so this morning that the key to turning my church around is prayer. Not just my prayer, but the prayers of every person in my congregation who considers our church worth having. This is not a one man show, it is a corporate effort.
I have talked with other pastors recently who are going through the same things I am facing. Less than a 1/3 of their congregants return for a Sunday night or Wednesday night service. They are burnt out preaching a message to the church when a good percentage of the church isn't there. They have tried everything their experience in ministry has taught them to grow their churches, yet they have come up empty. I say to those brethren, "Pray".
Pastor Bobby Johnson, one of the greatest COG pastors in our history, taught me the value of prayer as a young preacher. My dad, Rev. Alton L. Stone, Sr., showed me the value of prayer in some of his darkest times of ministry. In fact he and mom would pray and God would change things. I remember him talking many times about being burdened in prayer for special things that God would place on him.
So I have come to a conclusion-whatever decision I make on anything is not going to please everyone, but who can argue with a call to prayer? If that is the burden I must bear, then so be it-But I believe that it will change me, my congregation, and my community. If not, I will at least have obeyed God and done what He has told me to do.
So I'll carry this burden and I'll pray....and I'll believe that the windows of heaven will open and God will either move the church forward or move me to a place that desires to see an outpouring of His Spirit in these last days.
No comments:
Post a Comment