The Ministry of "Staying Put" Part 2

 Hello all:

I've been thinking a lot lately about the ministry of "staying put" and patiently waiting on the Lord's direction. People have a variety of opinions on how Christians should respond when a ministry or place of service turns difficult or veers off of its proper mission. Some people think that the best thing a Christian can do in that situation is to cut ties with the offending ministry and look for a "better" place of service. Others think that staying in place and being a "light shining in darkness" is the best option. Scripture seems to offer a variety of stories depicting both of these approaches. I want to share with you my personal experience. It is by no means intended to be the "measure" by which you should decide your course of action; rather, I would desire that you earnestly seek God's face and then obey his directions. That is the measure of a successful disciple--obedience to his Lord. So, dear reader, as you read my experience, take to heart these words: "Who are you to judge another's household servant? Before his own Lord he stands or falls. And he will stand, because of the Lord who is able to make him stand." (Romans 14:4) Obey God and you will be successful in the eyes of the only one who matters.   

I remember living in Waco, TX when I encountered a bit of trouble and seriously considered leaving the church I attended at the time. As my wife and I prayed about our situation, I kept returning to Psalm 37. Verse 3 of that Psalm says, "Trust in the LORD and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness." As I read this Psalm from David, I was reminded that sometimes the best thing I can do is simply wait before the Lord. I have learned that sometimes I simply need to "be still, and know that God is Lord." 

We are often tempted to take what I call an "American" approach to ministry:  We "work" our way up the ladder and progress from a "smaller" ministry to a "larger" one. We try sometimes to "help" God out by making our own opportunities instead of working diligently at the work God has placed in front of us. I'm not saying it is wrong to leave one work from another, I am simply stating that sometimes we need to "stay put" until we know God wants us to move to the next thing. We are full of anxiety, and we want to "make our mark." We should be listening to our Shepherd's voice. Does he want us to stay or to go? Obedience is success. 

Sometimes, however, that requires patience and humble waiting on marching orders from God (an area in which I know my own deficiency!). Others may move on to "bigger" and "better" things, but God sees fit to keep us in the "small" thing or in the "unknown" or even "difficult" ministry. We are told to remain somewhere that is hard, while others are freed by God to pursue ministry in what appears to us to be less difficult pastures. It is a hard word, but one that we need to hear. Sometimes the ministry in front of us, the ministry of "today" is best for the moment. Being faithful in the little things sows seeds for faithfulness in the larger endeavors. The goal is to find where God wants you, then stay there until he releases you to a new opportunity. Remain faithful, and let God lead. 

If you are in a "waiting period" at the moment, I want to share a poem I found in Streams in the Desert with you.    I hope it is a blessing to you. It is entitled "Patience in the Routine." 

"Stay there until I tell you."  (Matthew 2:13)

"I'll stay where You've put me;
I will, dear Lord, Though I wanted so badly to go;
I was eager to march with the 'rank and file,'
Yes, I wanted to lead them, You know.
I planned to keep step to the music loud,
To cheer when the banner unfurled,
To stand in the midst of the fight straight and proud,
But I'll stay where You've put me. 

"I'll stay where You've put me; I'll work, dear Lord,
Though the field be narrow and small,
And the ground be fallow, and the stones lie thick,
And there seems to be no life at all.
The field is Thine own, only give me the seed,
I'll sow it with never a fear;
I'll till the dry soil while I wait for the rain,
And rejoice when the green blades appear;
I'll work where You've put me. 

"I'll stay where You've put me; I will, dear Lord;
I'll bear the day's burden and heat,
Always trusting Thee fully; when even has come
I'll lay heavy sheaves at Thy feet.
And then, when my earth work is ended and done,
In the light of eternity's glow,
Life's record all closed, I surely shall find
It was better to stay than to go;
I'll stay where You've put me." 

Oh restless heart, that beat against your prison bars of circumstances, yearning for a wider sphere of usefulness, leave God to order all your days. Patience and trust, in the dullness of the routine of life, will be the best preparation for a courageous bearing of the tug and strain of the larger opportunity which God may some time send you.

Last month I posted a note entitled "Others May You Cannot." It deals with a similar issue, and you can find it here if you'd like to consider it as well: Others May You Cannot. 

 Thanks for reading!  

"Others May, You Cannot" by G. D. Watson

 While in college (several decades ago), I came across a tract named "Others May, You Cannot." I read it over and over for years until the tract fell apart. Before that happened, I made a handwritten copy of the contents, and later I typed them into my computer. Periodically this little article comes back into my life, and recently it was posted by a friend. I share it here for others who may need to hear the message.

Others May, You Cannot

If God has called you to be really like Jesus, He will draw you into a life of crucifixion and humility, and put upon you such demands of obedience, that you will not be able to follow other people, or measure yourself by other Christians, and in many ways He will seem to let other good people do things which He will not let you do.

Other Christians and ministers who seem very religious and useful, may push themselves, pull wires, and work schemes to carry out their plans, but you cannot do it; and if you attempt it, you will meet with such failure and rebuke from the Lord as to make you sorely penitent.

Others may boast of themselves, of their work, of their success, of their writings, but the Holy Spirit will not allow you to do any such thing, and if you begin it, He will lead you into some deep mortification that will make you despise yourself and all your good works.

Others may be allowed to succeed in making money, or may have a legacy left to them, but it is likely God will keep you poor, because He wants you to have something far better than gold, namely, a helpless dependence on Him, that He may have the privilege of supplying your needs day by day out of an unseen treasury.

The Lord may let others be honored and put forward, and keep you hidden in obscurity, because He wants you to produce some choice, fragrant fruit for His coming glory, which can only be produced in the shade.

He may let others be great, but keep you small. He may let others do a work for Him and get the credit for it, but He will make you work and toil on without knowing how much you are doing; and then to make your work still more precious, He may let others get the credit for the work which you have done, and thus make your reward ten times greater then Jesus comes.

The Holy Spirit will put a strict watch over you, with a jealous love, and will rebuke you for little words and feelings, or for wasting your time, which other Christians never seem distressed over.

So make up your mind that God is an infinite Sovereign, and has a right to do as He pleases with His own. He may not explain to you a thousand things which puzzle your reason in His dealings with you, but if you absolutely sell yourself to be His love slave, He will wrap you up in a jealous love, and bestow upon you many blessings which come only to those who are in the inner circle.

Settle it forever, then, that you are to deal directly with the Holy Spirit, and that He is to have the privilege of tying your tongue, or chaining your hand, or closing your eyes, in ways that He does not seem to use with others.

Now when you are so possessed with the loving God that you are, in your secret heart, pleased and delighted over this peculiar, personal, private, jealous guardianship and management of the Holy Spirit over your life, you will have found the vestibule of Heaven.

G. D. Watson, in Living Words

Thanks for reading! 

Others May . . . You Cannot

Earlier this week I had the privilege to speak to seminary students on the topic of "The CounterIntuitive Christ" from Mark 8:27-38.  One of the ideas in this text is that we are to follow Christ in his death by denying ourselves.  That means that we will need to obey God no matter the circumstances, outcomes, or "success" of our work on his behalf. This may mean that we will find ourselves ministering in obscurity while looking only to our Master for approval regarding the success or failure of our ministry.  As I've thought about living under the sentence of death for Jesus, I remembered an old tract a friend once sent to me. The tract was entitled "Others May, You Cannot." I have reprinted it hear as a reminder that the only applause we should seek is the smile and pleasure of our Lord that results from our complete obedience to and dependence on him. Enjoy!

"If God has called you to be really like Jesus he will draw you into a life of crucifixion and humility, and put upon you such demands of obedience, that you will not be able to follow other people, or measure yourself by other Christians, and in many ways he will seem to let other people do things he will not let you do.

"Other Christians and ministers, who seem very religious and useful, may push themselves, pull wires and work schemes to carry out their plans, but you cannot do it, and if you attempt it, you will meet with such failure and rebuke from the Lord as to make you sorely penitent.

"Others may be allowed to succeed in making money, or may have a legacy left to them, but it is likely God will keep you poor because He wants you to have something far better than gold, namely, a helpless dependence of Him, that He may have the privilege of supplying your needs day by day out of an unseen treasury.

"The Lord may let others be honored and put forward and keep you hidden in obscurity, because He wants to produce some choice fragrant fruit for His coming glory, which can only be produced in the shade. He may let others be great, but keep you small. He may let others do a work for Him and get all the credit for it, but make you work and toil on without knowing how much you are doing; and then to make your work still more precious he may let others get credit for the work which you have done, and thus make your reward ten times greater when Jesus comes.

"The Holy Spirit will put a strict watch over you with a jealous love, and will rebuke you for little words and feelings or for wasting time, which other Christians never feel distressed over. So make up your mind that God is sovereign and can do what He likes with His own. He may not explain to you a thousand things which puzzle your reason in his dealing with you, but if you absolutely sell out to be His servant, He will wrap you up in a jealous love, and bestow on you many blessings which come only to those who are in the inner circle.

"Settle it forever, then, that you deal directly with the Holy Spirit and that He is to have the privilege of tying your tongue, or chaining your hands, or closing your eyes, in ways that He does not seem to do with others. Now, when you are so possessed with the living God that you are, in your secret heart, pleased and delighted over this peculiar, personal, private, jealous guardianship and management of the Holy Spirit over your life, you will have found the vestibule of Heaven."

Thanks for reading!