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during the COVID-19 Crisis
Pastors and church leaders make God their refuge and strength and thus rise to the occasion by marshaling practical and theologically-informed strategies in place for church life and by teaching the wisdom of Scripture concerning God’s faithfulness.
Christians have been here before, and we can take comfort and wisdom from the actions of those who faced these kinds of things well. During the first 100 years or so of the early church, there are letters written by Roman governors during times of plague talking about the behavior of this strange new group of people, Christians.
You don’t need a degree in philosophy to incorporate apologetics into sermons. A solid study of basic logic, worldviews and arguments for Christianity and against other viewpoints can fortify those in the church to have a winsome reason for their hope in Christ
The sweetest comfort I found in my grief was knowing that my baby is with Jesus. That he or she will never know loss, pain, cold, grief, disappointment or sorrow. That all their soul will ever know is joy in the presence of God.
Trying to make sense of tough topics, most people will end up online and in social media listening to friends or cultural icons. Nothing compares, however, to how a pastor will be around after the service, available over email and present the next week.
Joyless people are miserable people. They haven’t tasted and seen that the Lord is good. They haven’t yet learned that it’s through our times of suffering that the Lord often does his best work. I have been in a joyless place, and chances are you have, too.
How can we let ourselves forget or neglect or even trivialize this sacrifice? For all our grand plans for church renewal, for contemporary worship, for being missional, for connecting with the millennials, for connecting with the “nones” and now for connecting with Generation Z, we should never downplay that sacred institution given by our sacrificial Christ for His church. Communion matters—more than we may think.
Discouragement may come to the godliest and most talented of God’s ministers in the church. But as we remember to reflect on God’s good providence, His willingness to let us lament before Him, and how He has rescued his servants who sank deep into despair, we can find our moorings and press on to serve Him with gladness of heart.
There is something incredibly special and valuable about a leader who will cultivate a culture where their team feels safe.
Preach God’s Word with passion this coming weekend. May the repentance of sin and placing faith in Jesus get our utmost attention. Let’s remove every unnecessary, uncomfortable distraction from the proclamation of Gospel.
Pastors are shepherds who need to teach their flocks how to protect themselves against wolves, both human and demonic.
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