“If God can bring his Son back from the dead, he can resurrect the church we serve and even us pastors as well.” Those words were spoken by one of my seminary professors and have always stuck with me. Sometimes the place where we are called to serve doesn’t seem to have very much life. Now, I know that I’m speaking hypothetically and that none of us pastors have ever felt that way. However, for the purpose of illustration and application, let’s assume that is the case where you serve. Things are tough and rough. You pray and preach. You minister and attend all of the meetings. You share Jesus regularly and train your people to do the same. In essence, you’re doing everything that “they” told you to do, but it doesn’t seem that much “life” is coming out of your efforts. You’re tempted to get discouraged.
Brad WhittI’d imagine that the disciples and friends of Jesus must have felt something similar on that first Easter morning – before they went to the tomb. But what a difference a day makes! When they arrived at the tomb, they expected to find death, but what they discovered was life. Jesus had been raised from the dead.
This year, our purpose is to be an encouragement to you and your church. That’s why I’m writing this and future articles. That is why we’re planning what I believe will be the greatest pastor’s conference ever. We want to help minister to you and your family in 2010. I believe God has “greater things” in store for you and your church. To paraphrase the old country preacher, “It may feel like Friday, but Sunday’s coming.”
Keep preaching. Keep reaching. Keep loving and leading. Just like the Father hadn’t forgotten about Jesus while he was in the tomb, he hasn’t forgotten about you and your ministry either.
I hope these simple words of encouragement will minister to you today. Please plan on attending the 2010 South Carolina Baptist Convention Pastor’s Conference on Nov. 15 at Riverland Hills Baptist Church in Irmo. It’s going to be a great time of encouragement and equipping.
I want to thank The Baptist Courier again for allowing me to connect with you through this column this year. I also want to encourage you to become a part of the process by following our progress on the 2010 SCBC Pastor’s Conference fan page on Facebook and on Twitter/@SCBCPastorsConf.
– Whitt is pastor of Temple Baptist Church in Simpsonville and president of the 2010 South Carolina Baptist Pastor’s Conference.