Last night I attended a meeting of the worship team at our church. Our senior pastor has resigned effective next week and the associate has been named acting pastor. Both attended that meeting.
There were discussions about the change and as I sat there I seemed to sense a negative feeling that there would be change. Please understand, I will not try to tell you that I handle change well. I can remember during one change about two years ago I said, "I don't need this," referring to the change. I did not say, "We don't need this," or "The church don't need this," I said, "I don't need this." It was all about me. Sure we sing that song, "It's all about you, Jesus." But how often when the rubber meets the road it can become "all about me." If you have been there, don't fuss about it, just repent.
Near the end of the meeting I shared something I feel is good to share.
First, if I had my way we would have no change, the senior pastor would stay and that would be it. But I have had three scriptures brought to mind in all of this and I am somewhat at peace. The first two came about five minutes after he stated that he was resigning. Until I looked them up I thought they were in one passage. My mind was somewhat in turmoil during the announcement and then these scriptures came to me and I was at peace. I believe it was by the Holy Spirit. It may seem to some to be out of place but bear with me.
Act 21:13 Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
Act 21:14 And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.
2 Timothy 4:6-8 KJVA
(6) For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
(7) I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
(8) Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
When it first came to me I thought, "He is going away, not dying." But then I started looking at what the scripture was speaking. Paul clearly states his desire to follow the will of God. He tells them to not weep and break his heart. It is reminiscent of Jesus saying to Peter.
Luke 4:8 KJVA
(8) And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
And as much as I would love to see our pastor stay, I cannot go down that road. I do not know where the other road is going or how rough it is but I do know that road is not in God's will as much as it would be mine. To this I must say, "Not my will but yours be done oh Lord."
The discussion of change brought some retrospection. I've been in church work since I was three years old. In those sixty plus years I have seen few years of peace for the church, whether you are talking about the church universal or the local body I was in at the time. The third scripture, one from Amos the prophet comes to mind.
Amos 6:1 KJVA
(1) Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came!
I have always looked at those times of peace as good, that is till last night. I must confess now I am not sure. But to say, "Woe to them that are at ease in Zion," seems very far out of place. Is there something wrong with being in comfort? As I look back over sixty years I am beginning to think "yes". Most of the time the church was growing spiritually and in numbers as in the time of the greatest stress.
In the times of ease people got complacent. Peace time armies are like that. They get soft, officers who are better at writing reports get promoted rather than officers who know how to lead in battle. There are other examples but this was best evidenced in the U. S. submarine force in 1942. Few men who were sub captains at the beginning of that year were still there at the end, most were transferred to "non-combat" ships or desk positions because they lacked the ability to conduct combat operations.
By the middle of that year the silent service was conducting operations not dreamed of before the war and by the end of the year it was placing boats off shore of the home islands. The war ended with submarines sinking a little more tonnage than all of the other forces combined. The silent service was not at ease. In the next three years it punished it's enemy severely. That is the posture the church must take, punishing the enemy. This is a military phrase that means you are doing damage to the enemy. We do not do that when we are at ease in Zion.
I have asked, "Have we become at ease in Zion?"
I can't answer that for us or you. The big question for me is, "Have I?" I must respond to that, "Probably to some degree." But there is a model for how God handles this in scripture.
Deuteronomy 32:11-12 KJVA
(11) As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings:
(12) So the LORD alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him.
The eagle stirs her nest. She makes the young eaglets uncomfortable in the nest and then takes them out for flying lessons. They must get out of the nest to learn to fly. She spreads her wings for them to ride, takes them up and then lets them solo. She is ever there to swoop under them to catch them if they do not get the solo flight going the first time. But she teaches them what it feels like to soar and then teaches them how to do it on their own.
The nest is safe, the mother's wing is exciting but safe. But although there is risk, there is freedom in the solo flight.
