In Obscurity... Glory!

“Pastors enter congregations vocationally in order to embrace the totality of human life in Jesus' name. We are convinced there is no detail, however unpromising, in people's lives in which Christ may not work his will. Pastors agree to stay with the people in their communities week in and week out, year in and year out, to proclaim and guide, encourage and instruct as God works his purposes (gloriously, as it will eventually turn out) in the meandering and disturbingly inconstant lives of our congregations.

This necessarily means taking seriously, and in faith, the dull routines, the empty boredom, and the unattractive responsibilities that make up much of most people's lives. It means witnessing to the transcendent in the fog and rain. It means living hopefully among people who from time to time get flickering glimpses of the Glory, but then live through stretches, sometimes long ones, of unaccountable grayness. Most pastoral work takes place in obscurity: deciphering grace in the shadows, searching out meaning in a difficult text, blowing on the embers of a hard-used life. This is hard work and not conspicuously glamorous.”

― Eugene H. Peterson,

 Under the Unpredictable Plant and

 Exploration in Vocational Holiness. 

May your "Ten Minutes" in ministry obscurity pour out "glimpses of Glory" that will last for all eternity. Remember why you began this journey and keep "blowing on the embers" as your heart burns for the Glory of God and the souls of men. 

Yours in obscurity, that Jesus might shine,

~ PJVS 

God's Great Things

"If I am bored with ordinary people in ordinary places, then am I not bored with what God delights in? If I think that local limits of body and place are too small a thing for a person as gifted as I am, then don’t I want to escape what God himself gladly and daily inhabits? If I stare at a face, a flower, a child, or a congregation and say, “But God, not this. I want to do something great for you!” Am I not profoundly misunderstanding what God says a great thing is?”

― Zack Eswine, The Imperfect Pastor: Discovering Joy in Our Limitations through a Daily Apprenticeship with Jesus  

"For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God." ~ 1 Corinthians 1:26-29

The joy and awesome privilege in serving the King of King and Lord of Lords should overwhelm us every day...wherever our Lord places us. May you be awestruck this week with the great thing that God has entrusted to your care and find great joy in making a difference for the Master.

~ PJVS 

Run with Endurance...

"In the fifth and sixth centuries, Gildas and Salvian arose to alert a careless church and a formal ministry. In the sixteenth century, the same task faced the Reformers. In the seventeenth century, Baxter and others took a prominent part in stimulating the lethargic devotion and dormant energy of his fellow ministers. In the eighteenth century, God raised up some choice and noble men to awaken the church and lead the way to a higher and bolder career of ministerial duty. The present century stands no less in need of some such stimulating influence. We have experienced many symptoms of life, but still the masses are not quickened. We require some new Baxter to arouse us by his voice and his example. It is distressing to see the amount of ministerial fatigue and inefficiency that still spreads over our land. How long, O Lord, how long?"

~ Bonar, Horatius. A Word to Fellow Pastors 

and Other Christian Leaders

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted."

~ Hebrews 12:1-3

"Give me one hundred preachers who fear nothing but sin and desire nothing but God, and I care not whether they be clergymen or laymen, they alone will shake the gates of Hell and set up the kingdom of Heaven upon Earth."

- John Wesley

Blended Qualities...

"Two dangers exist for pastors when it comes to setting standards for success. One is to shoot for the moon. The other is to throw in the towel... 

Who is more successful: the pastor who grows a large church or the one who maintains a church in a stagnant area? The pastor who preaches to thousands or the one who lovingly cares for individuals one by one? The pastor who impatiently pushes people to deeper discipleship or the pastor who patiently accepts the shortcomings of his people?

YES.

Faithfulness, shepherding, teaching, patience, perseverance, growth, progress— these are some of the facets of the diamond of success. Each alone won’t bring glory to God, but together they make a lustrous offering to him."

~  Stuart Briscoe, Measuring Success, In Measuring up: the need to succeed and the fear of failure 

As you stand on the threshold of a New Year with so many expectations, may you maintain the blended qualities that bring the greatest possible glory to God and ... Don't throw in the towel!! 

~ PJVS

Questions for a New Year...

As we begin a new year in ministry, let's take a moment to reflect on the following words from "The Heart Of A Great Pastor" by H. B. London Jr. & Neal B. Wiseman... 

"Every pastor in the thick of the struggle must answer significant questions, the answers to which will shape his ministry and determine his effectiveness: 

• What difference will I make? 

• Why am I here? 

• Who sent me? 

•  Is this assignment sacred because God placed me here? 

•  What does God want to accomplish through me? 

Every assignment is holy ground because Jesus gave Himself for the people who live there. Every place is important because God wants something incredibly important to be accomplished there through us. Every situation is special because ministry is needed in that place. Like Queen Esther, we have come to the Kingdom for a time like this."

“Father, make of me a crisis man. Bring those I contact to decision. Let me not be a milepost on a single road; make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me.” 
― Jim Elliot, Martyred Missionary  

May you make a difference for Jesus in 2024

~ PJVS

In It's Time...

“It is not my strength that grows, so much as God's strength in me, which is given more abundantly as the days roll. It is so given on one condition. If my faith has laid hold of the infinite, the exhaustless, the immortal energy of God, unless there is something fearfully wrong about me, I shall be getting purer, nobler, wiser, more observant of His will; gentler, like Christ; every way fitter for His service, and for larger service, as the days increase.” ~ Alexander Maclaren

As I recently observed summer slip into fall, and fall slowly slip away toward winter, I couldn't help but be instructed. Ministry progresses at one speed... HIS. Just as I could never cause seasons to change faster, neither could I ever cause God's work to move faster than He planned. Since patience comes to us in the fruit of the Spirit, we have all that we need to "lay hold of the infinite, the exhaustless, the immortal energy of God" and wait for seasons to pass and harvest to come. I pray that you will stay the course my brother... and wait! Why? Because He still "makes everything beautiful in its time."

Keep looking up to the One who renews our strength,

~ PJVS

Been with Jesus...

"Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus." - Acts 4:13

As far back as the 12th century, apprenticeships were a large part of learning a trade. Parents would often place their teenage son under the instruction of a Guild's Master craftsman. After 5 to 9 years the young man would most likely become highly skilled in the specified trade. His future success as a craftsman would depend on who he had been with during his years of training.

While the disciples were uneducated, common men, they had spent three years with Jesus. They sat under his teaching and joined him in a great many ministry activities. They had become highly skilled servants and preachers of the Gospel. But what was most significant was not so much the lessons learned as the One they had been with during their years of training.

When you minister from week to week, what do people observe most of all? Are they impressed with your Bible knowledge, or is it your vast church experience? Do you have an impressive resume from the best Bible Colleges and Seminaries? These will never have the same lasting impact as WHO you spent time with in preparation. Every day and every week, your skill in ministry should be rooted in this fact: that you have been with Jesus. 

- PJVS

"David Brainerd died at the home of Jonathan Edwards when he was 29 years old. During the few years of his life, he had such a passion for God that nothing else could satiate his heart. He would kneel in the snow and be so lost in worship, prayer and intercession that when he was through, the snow would melt around him in a wide circle. We need passion like that today. Oh, for men and women who have such a longing for God that everything else in their life would be pushed away!"

~ Tozer, A. W.. My Daily Pursuit: Devotions for Every Day