shepherding the shepherd
from PreachingToday.com
‘What I Do Have I Give You’
I suspect none of us have a line in our job description stating, “Prioritize interruptions,” or “Stop, whenever the Spirit leads, to do acts of kindness in Jesus’ name.” Can you imagine that coming up in your annual job review? “On a scale of one to ten how would you rate yourself on spontaneous acts of kindness? Give examples.”
Roses
The bouquet of red roses caught my attention. Just before Christmas two women and a little girl found seats near the fireplace in the coffee shop where I hang out. They brought the roses. One of the women, a pastor’s wife, recognized me, and we chatted for a moment. “Who are the roses for?” I asked. “We don’t know yet,” she replied. “We’re going to ask God who we should give them to.”
‘Myrrh Is Mine’
There is a sacred fragrance to our calling. Pastors handle holy treasures, lay our hands upon the warm outside walls of eternity, dwell on God’s mystery finally made known, and outfit saints for eternity with Christ. It is like working in a perfumery. “For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved ….”
Good as Gold
The first shepherds to see the Christ child came empty-handed. We pastors, however, are a new breed of shepherds. We have our own unique, God-given treasures of gold, incense, and myrrh to present to the Lord Jesus. Take, to begin with, our gifts of gold…
‘The Crowning Grace of Old Age’
A seminary student once told me, “When I think of grace, I don’t think of my pastors or youth pastor. I think of the old ladies in my church.” He didn’t mean that his pastors had failed him but rather that those elderly women had brought him a unique gift of grace.