Tag Archives: Ministry

by | January 5, 2016 · 6:30 am

Random Advice for Preachers

The fact that I am still preaching after all these years is a miracle and a testament to God’s grace and mercy…grace in that He called me and continues to use me; mercy in that He hasn’t zapped me with lightning.

Therefore, before I do something totally stupid and end up being forced to take an early flaming chariot ride beyond the clouds, you might want to pay attention.

You may not be a preacher or a pastor, but if you are, or know someone who is, I want here are seven (7) random, unsolicited, out-of-the-blue words of advice. Take them for what they are worth while I am still around to offer them.

  1. Take the time to learn how to pronounce the names of ancient places and people before you stand up to read your text or selected Scripture. This even applies to extra-biblical names. Not only will you appear more intelligent, but you will avoid the risk of pronouncing something not meant to be uttered from the pulpit.
  2. Always make sure your wireless mic is turned off before you kneel at the altar to pray with someone. The congregation doesn’t need to hear someone confess something over the main speakers.
  3. For heaven’s sake, turn off your wireless mic BEFORE you make a last minute trip to the men’s room before the service or during the choir special.
  4. Never assume sugar plums are a safe illustration during a Christmas sermon when you have in your congregation elderly people who have a penchant to talk loud enough to be heard…and like to point out there were other “things” sugar was added to in order to make children latch on.
  5. Never confess from the pulpit that you are yourself and may never be “another Billy Graham.” Someone will ALWAYS say, “Amen!”
  6. Never use your wife in a sermon illustration unless you want to become an illustration for what not to do in a sermon.
  7. Never make ministry about success, wealth, health, the good life, or yourself; preach Christ crucified. You may come across as a fool to some, but the message of the cross is the power and wisdom of God to those who will believe (1 Cor. 1:23-31).

There’s more I could tell you, but what are your thoughts? Do you have any words of advice for up-and-coming preachers?

Gratuitous Cute Pet Photo

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by | December 7, 2015 · 10:20 am

Another Funeral for a Stranger

If there is anything that is difficult in ministry, it’s conducting a funeral service. If there is any kind of funeral service that is more difficult than another for a minister, I’d have to say it would be either a close family member or a child.

However, even though doing the funeral for a friend or loved one may be painful, doing one for a total stranger has its own share of difficulties. That is what I am going to be doing today…again.

  • What would you say to encourage a grieving family as they look at you standing over the casket of their loved one?
  • How do you share in the grief and pain, the loss and sorrow, with a host of people you’ve never even met?

In just a couple of hours I will be standing in a funeral home, beside or above a dead body, looking at a room full of people with tears in their eyes, as they hear me speak about someone intimately familiar, but of whom I know little about.  What would you say?

How would you handle it?

This is how… With love, compassion, and tenderness, as one who has also gone through pain and loss, give them Jesus, because…”If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.” – 1 Corinthians 15:19-20

It doesn’t matter who they are, even strangers need hope. Give them Jesus.

Update:

If you would like to hear the sermon that I preached (with private details removed), just click on the link below. You may find it interesting, instructional, and inspirational. 

If you are a minister, please note several things. First, I did not use a rigid outline. Secondly, I incorporated things going on in the “here and now.” Third, since I was not able to relate to the family through familiarity with the deceased, I related to the family by tapping into the shared experience of personal sorrow and loss (empathy). Fourth, I primarily focused on the Truth of the Word of God, our only source of eternal hope and comfort.

Easter sunrise 2015

Funeral Sermon for a Man I Didn’t Know

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by | December 1, 2015 · 10:21 pm

“Maybe You Should Seek Counseling?”

The Atheist

Every once in a while I encounter one of those atheists. Those atheists are the ones who troll the internet in search of Christian blogs, their prime objective being to “enlighten” us (i.e., intimidate us into silence) with their browbeating, far-superior intellects and firmer grasp on all things biblical and theological. They are the bullies of the blogosphere, dutifully heeding Richard Dawkins’ call for mockery.

Today, one of those atheists made a comment on a comment I made on another blog. His tone was condescending, irreverent, and vulgar (in his particular shade), just as always. Then, after some purposeful sarcastic language from me (which is all he is now qualified to receive, for it’s obvious anything more is casting pearls before swine), he said: “You really do have issues, Anthony. Maybe you should seek counselling?”

My response…

“Ha! You don’t know the half!”

His reply…

“You are right, I do not. But maybe this is half the reason you sought your god in the first place, perhaps?”

My response…

“Actually, that’s why my God sought me (Luke 4:18).”

His final reply, showing complete and willful ignorance…

“Really? What were you doing, Anthony, lurking in a back-alley?”

I Have Issues

The thing from the above exchange that stuck with me was the comment about me needing counseling. If the truth be known, we ALL have issues, and I am certainly no exception. For that matter, I am well acquainted with counseling and counselors.

It wasn’t worth my time to go into any detail with the obviously antagonistic troll who only wanted to get a rise out of me. Had he been one who really cared, if it would have done any good, I might have shared with him some deeper truths concerning the atonement and redemption, of the God who came to seek and to save the lost, to heal the brokenhearted.

But he scoffs at all that. He is no sinner. There is no God to whom he must answer. There is no need for crutches; he’s not crippled!

But I am broken. I am wounded. I do suffer from scars. I do deal with painful memories. I don’t have all the answers when I hurt, much less answers for others. I long for ultimate redemption! I do struggle with temptation. There are times when I feel overwhelmed, afraid, helpless, and hopeless. And yes, sometimes my faith gets weak.

Sometimes I do hide from my God…in my thoughts…in my books…in activities…even in the occasional dark and secluded place – much like a back alley.

But then Jesus comes looking for me, saying, “Anthony, where art thou?“

My response?

“Here I am, Lord.”

His reply…

“I know, but why?”

My response…

“I was ashamed. I was afraid. I was angry at You, and myself, and angry I felt that way.”

His reply…

“Son, you’ve got issues.”

Me….

“I sorry…..  I’m so sorry.”

His still, small voice…

“I know, son. But hey! I’m your Counselor! Let’s talk about it.”

Then what follows is the kind of counseling those atheists will never be able to understand…because they don’t have issues.

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by | November 21, 2015 · 7:58 pm

A Sight Worth Visiting: Fallen Pastors

Hey everybody!

Listen, I was doing some reading and came across a blog I think more people should read. It’s called Fallen Pastor (Finding Restoration In a Broken World).

Maybe you’ve known a pastor or minister who has fallen, who has walked away from ministry, because of some moral failure. Sadly, there are more than people think. Maybe it happened to you. Fallen Pastor has something for everyone in any ministerial position.

For that matter, Fallen Pastor has some strong advice for everyone.

Seriously, I was scrolling through the list of posts on Fallen Pastor and was shocked that there were not more “likes.” As a matter of fact, Fallen Pastor has been around for several years, and yet there are barely 100 subscribers! That is sad!

Ray Carroll, the blog’s author, was a pastor who “fell from grace” because of an affair. But instead of walking away from God, as many do in these situations, Mr. Carroll has taken the opportunity to help and challenge others.

Consider this sampling of posts from Fallen Pastor:

So, my friends, go check out Fallen Pastor; there’s a lot of good stuff posted there.

Consider subscribing, too. We need to encourage our pastors, even those who have made mistakes.

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by | May 18, 2015 · 1:18 pm

It’s Fine to Say “Fine”

Slow Day

It is Monday, and I have not done much of anything. Why? Because I am completely drained of all enthusiasm, of all energy, and still sick to my stomach because of some frozen fish fillets my daughter and I made yesterday.

While many pastors take Mondays off, I still have to work (at least through this week – summer’s coming). While other pastors use Monday to play golf, read, shop for new Lear jets, or watch videos of Francis Chan and David Platt, I must get up early and drive a school bus. But does that bother me? Naaaah! The coffee and sunrises are worth it.

But today is one of those days when I want to read…I want to study…I want to get something done around the house…I want to pray…I want to – I was going to say “exercise,” but that would be lying. I want to be up and doing something, but I just don’t have the energy, and I don’t feel well. So there.

However, if somebody were to call me on the telephone and ask, “Anthony, how are your doing?“, I’d probably answer as I usually do, “I’m fine.”

Don’t Say It!

Now, I know what some of you are probably thinking; I can telepathically sense your indignation. You want to yell at me, “But you’re NOT fine, Anthony! Quit lying!” Yeah, yeah…I’ve heard that before. I’ve even preached it from the pulpit.

A while back, when I was playing bass guitar for The Glovers, the big push was to get people to be honest with each other in the church, to be honest about our hurts. For sure, some wounds can never be healed if they are never brought out into the healing light of the Truth. We would say things like, “If you were honest with your brother, you’d tell him how you really feel,” and, “You say you’re fine, buy you’re lying.”

But I want to go out on a limb and suggest something radical: sharing everything isn’t always the brightest idea.

As Frog Hair

There is a sweet lady in our church, Virginia, who responds the same way about every time I ask how she is doing. Almost without fail she will reply, “Fine as frog hair! And you can’t get much finer than that, can ya’?” Now, I know she has health problems, a few bruises from a recent accident, and a sister who is ill, but what am I supposed to say? Should I scold her for not taking the time to list all her aches and pains? Or, should I just accept the fact that she wants to be encouraging?

photo (49)Frog hair is pretty fine, I must say. But when it comes to sandpaper and steel wool, fine is certainly a relative term. For example, I would not mind someone lightly rubbing a swatch of fine, Chinese silk across my sunburned shoulder. However, if your were to take a piece of “fine” sandpaper or “OO” steal wool and do the same, I’d have to hurt you once my crying and screaming stopped. Therefore, “fine” is a relative term.

Here’s my point: the next time you ask someone how they’re doing, don’t automatically assume they are being dishonest when they say, “I’m fine.” Not everyone who has a down day writes a blog. Not everyone cares to talk about their bad fish fillets.

Sometimes it’s just fine to say, “I’m fine.”

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by | May 18, 2015 · 7:00 am

Don’t Beg, Just Dig

How about a little Matthew Henry to start off the week?

The following is commentary based on Proverbs 13:23.

Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry

See…[how] a small estate may be improved by industry, so that a man, by making the best of every thing, may live comfortably upon it: Much food is in the tillage of the poor, the poor farmers, that have but a little, but take pains with that little and husband it well. Many make it an excuse for their idleness that they have but a little to work on, a very little to be doing with; but the less compass the field is of the more let the skill and labour of the owner be employed about it, and it will turn to a very good account. Let him dig, and he needs not beg.[1]

See, then, that you don’t complain about the field in which you work, just work the field. The smaller the plot, the more work it may take to produce a crop, but a crop it will produce.

Never forget that “God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Gal. 6:7). If you work the field, plant and water the seed, then the One who sent you into the field will take care of the rest.

Little is much when God is in it. Don’t beg – and don’t worry – just dig. 

 

[1] Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), Pr 13:23.

 

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by | May 8, 2015 · 3:00 pm

I’m Sorry, but It’s Mother’s Day

The Gripe

My dearly beloved, we have gathered here today to read the sometimes uncaring and cold-hearted commentary of a man without the “wo”;  a male without the “fe”;  and a testosterone-producing, horsepower-loving, father and husband who sometimes leaves the toilet seat up – on purpose. But that being said, I am not completely insensitive.

For example, I love kittens and puppies, the laughs of little children, and the occasional chick-flick. But more to the point, I understand that for some women, Mother’s Day is not the happiest day of the year.

Just the other day someone shared with me a link to an interesting and eye-opening article, An open letter to pastors (A non-mom speaks about Mother’s Day). I read it, thought about it, and got it. The only problem is that I (the pastor) am not the only one who contributes to the whole Mother’s Day celebration – mothers do!

If dad forgets to say, “Happy Mother’s Day, dear,” the wife gets her feelings hurt and then there’s Hades to pay. If the kids forget to say, “Happy Mother’s Day!” or forget to make a card out of noodles and Elmer’s glue, start handing out the tissues and Xanax. If the pastor forgets to make a big deal out of the holiday, or forgets to purchase carnations to distribute at the end of the service, then some little old lady will be demanding a special meeting to discuss his replacement.

So, as one who’s congregation is made up of more women than men, by a large – not a good word – significant percentage, what in the name of Oprah am I supposed to do???

The Plan

Here’s my plan: I will try to please everybody.

Mothers, we love you. Single women, we love you. Wives without children, we love you. Single, expectant mothers, we love you. Women who’ve lost their children, we love you. Women who want to have children but can’t, we love you. Those of you who had an abusive mother and still nurse the scars, we love you. Women who have adopted or are foster parents, we love you. Women who teach and mentor kids that are not your own, we love you. And what’s more, ladies, God loves you and understands your story more than any earthly man, even more than Dr. Phil.

Now, to those of you who just hate kids and want nothing to do with them, well… I guess I can’t please everybody, after all.

The Song

So, I’m sorry, but it is the Mother’s Day weekend, and some traditions must go on. Each year on this blog I post one of the best Mother’s Day songs ever written, if not the best; I can’t help it if it doesn’t please everybody.  Just understand it was written by a half-brained male with frequent-stayer points at the Dog House Inn.

My Mother :-)

My Mother 🙂

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by | January 31, 2015 · 1:07 pm

A Thought for Men of God

Iron sharpens iron; rust against rust just crumbles.

As men of God we are to encourage each other, to hold each other accountable, but beware of your condition…and the condition of your peers. The only thing a neglected spiritual life can do is make a mess.

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by | January 22, 2015 · 9:21 am

An Honest Salesman?

The following are some thoughts of mine originally posted at my other blog, Proverbial Thought.

The Proverb

“The thoughts of the righteous [are] right: [but] the counsels of the wicked [are] deceit.” – Proverbs 12:5 KJV

It is not often that I choose to quote another author, but I found the following words instructive.

“The plans of the righteous are right.” His designs are well-intentioned and morally sound because the mind of the righteous man is disciplined by wisdom. On the other hand, “the counsels of the wicked are deceit.” Their warped minds invent crooked methods for reaching their goals. To them the end always justifies the means.”*

The Ends

Do you ever stop to think about the “ends?” In other words, do you ever stop to think about the results of your actions, or your thoughts? Do you plan ahead? Do you think about consequences?

The “thoughts of the righteous are right” because the righteous have right hearts. And because of their righteous thoughts, the means to an end matter just as much as the result. They want to do what is right, because it is right.

On the other hand, the wicked think only of self-gratifying goals. As the above quote says, “To them the end always justifies the means.” Because of an unwise, wicked heart, what is right does not matter, only the desired result.

The Means

#8 in the nation! Booyah!

I have known many salesmen over the years. As a matter of fact, I was a pretty successful one, too. And if there was anything that characterized the typical salesman, it was the desire to make a sale, to “close the deal,” even if his “counsel” was a little deceitful.

The problem with many salespeople is that they will tell you whatever you want to hear, even things you don’t, in order to sell a product or service. What the customer needs or can afford is rarely a consideration when sales bonuses and large paychecks are at stake. As long as a dollar can be made, it is thought “the end justifies the means.”

So how do you know when you have met a “righteous” salesman? When he won’t sell you something, even when you think you want it. Happily, I can say I’ve walked away from sales, even when the rent was due; taking advantage of customers was wrong. Even though I might have needed the money, the end did not justify the means.

A Prayer

Dear Lord, give us a righteous heart that thinks right things. Keep us from wicked and deceitful thoughts. Give us a heart for others over the needs of self. Reprove us, Jesus, when we are tempted to deceive, for what waits in the end is anything but gain.

 

*James E. Smith, The Wisdom Literature and Psalms, Old Testament Survey Series (Joplin, MO: College Press Pub. Co., 1996), Pr 12:2–7.

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by | December 26, 2014 · 5:38 pm

Getting Ready for Resolutions

Resolutions

We have all made them; we’ve all broken them. However, making a resolution is not a bad thing.

I will be sharing some thoughts about making resolutions in an upcoming post, but for now I want to briefly address one resolution I will not make a priority – having a large crowd at church.

Numbers

Numbers are not a bad thing, either – at least not always. But when it comes to growing a church for numbers’ sake, then numbers are a very bad thing.

I pastor a small church which could benefit from a few more in attendance (there’s nothing wrong with wanting to see a church congregation grow). But on the other hand, numbers don’t paint the whole picture (or is that painting by numbers doesn’t give you the best picture?). Actually, many times small numbers may reflect better than thousands on the roll. How is that possible?

In a commentary on Ezekiel 2:5 I found the following:

“Preachers ought not to look to, to reckon upon hearers, but to listen to the Lord alone.—To preach God’s word compensates even in the case of empty churches.—A full church, therefore, is not always a testimony for the preacher, 2 Tim. 4:3.”*

*John Peter Lange et al., A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Ezekiel (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2008), 65.

2 Timothy 4:3 says: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears.”

So, a large church could be the result of listener-approved sensationalism and flimsy doctrine. Ever been to one of those, or watched one on television?

Resolution #1

bibleMy number one ministerial resolution (aside from those having to do with my personal walk with Christ and roles as husband and father) will be to “Preach the Word.”

Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. – 2 Timothy 4:2

The last thing I will resolve to do is grow an Oprah-sanctioned, ear-scratching, one-size-fits-all book club. I will preach from the Book, full church or not. That will be my “testimony.” That will be my resolution. Therefore I have “set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed (Isaiah 50:7).”

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