July 5, 2018

Ministering to Others

Wherefore comfort one another with these words. 
(1 Thessalonians 4:18)

A pastor once attended the funeral of an acquaintance, and by mistake ended up at the wrong funeral parlor. The body of an elderly man was laid out, and his widow was the only mourner there. She seemed so lonely, the pastor stayed for the funeral and then accompanied her to the cemetery. After the committal service, as they were driving away the pastor confessed that he hadn't actually known the lady's husband. "I thought so," she replied. "I didn't recognize you. But it doesn't matter. You'll never, ever, know what this means to me." Philip Yancey writes: 'Simple availability is the most powerful force we can contribute...We rightly disparage Job's three friends for their insensitive response to his suffering. But read the account again: 'When they came, they sat in silence beside Job for seven days before opening their mouths'...those were the most eloquent moments they spent with him. Instinctively I shrink back from people in pain. Who knows if they want to talk about their predicament or not? Do they want to be consoled or cheered up? What good can my presence possibly do? My mind spins out these rationalizations and as a result I end up doing the worst thing possible: I stay away...No one offers the name of a philosopher when I ask, 'Who helped you the mos•?' Most often they describe a quiet, unassuming person...who was there...who listened more than they talked, who didn't keep glancing down at a watch, who hugged and touched, and cried... someone who was available and came on the sufferer's terms, not their own.' That's how you minister to others. ​

---

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7)

As opposed to a spirit of fear, we are given a spirit of adoption that we may be called sons of God (Romans 8:5)! The very Spirit of God has bestowed all power, love and grace upon us. By this, we have become heirs of the Most High for we are a new creation in His character. We have been delivered and glorified by Christ through the power and love of the Holy Spirit.

---

This week's (#27) schedule for reading the Bible:
Sunday: (Law) Leviticus 10-12
Monday: (History) 2 Kings 1-5
Tuesday: (Psalms) Psalms 78-80
Wednesday: (Poetry) Proverbs 8-9
Thursday: (Prophecy) Ezekial 19-24
Friday: (Gospels) Luke 17-18
Saturday: (Letters) Phillipians 3-4