“And He Shall Direct Your Paths”

“Not my might, not by power, but by my coaching” saith my emails.

Am I the only one being bombarded with emails from people who know the secrets of how to make my ministry a success?  According to my inbox, practically every problem I face in the ministry can be overcome if I simply have the appropriate coaching from the right coach.  From my leadership effectiveness, to my evangelistic outreach methods, to my per capita giving, to every basic system in the church body and even my personal income streams – EVERYTHING can be resolved by signing up to meet with someone once or twice a month, via video conference or simply by reading or watching their material at my “leisure” for a small fee of only…

Now don’t take me wrong, I am certainly not against learning from other people.  By some standards, I am considered an “early adopter” and many things in my ministry can be traced back to the words, the books or the examples of others.  As one preacher put it:  “If my bullet fits your gun, shoot it!”  And heaven knows I’ve shot many greats ideas of others through my “gun” over the years.

I am concerned, however, that we may sometimes be searching for “magic bullets” from other ministries rather than going to the One who truly knows and understands our situation the best!

A verse we often quote (but sometimes forget to apply) says: 

·       “Trust in the Lord with all your heart” - I know that we know this, but do we really believe that God will build His Church, in our location, through His means and by following His ways?  The answer at our ordination service would have been a resounding “yes” but how about after several years of reality, and more than a few discouragements.  Do we really trust Him?

·       “And lean not on your own understanding” – With every year we spend in the ministry, it often becomes harder and harder to not lean on our own experience, our own perspective, our own “convictions” in situations.  We’ve tried that before, we’ve seen that, we know how this will turn out…  And yet God’s Word says not to lean or depend on ourselves.  Rather, Solomon tells us…

·       “In all your ways acknowledge Him” – The word we probably trip on the most in this command is the little word “ALL.”  Remembering to take everything to God – the attendance, the baptisms, the budgets, the people “stuff,” the things that have worked so well over the years but might not be working so well now.  Yes, in ALL our ways, in everything we do, take it to Him:  not just to ask Him to bless us, but to make sure it’s even what we should be doing.

·       “And He shall direct your paths.” – It doesn’t say “might,” it says “shall.”  That is an assurance!  That is the same word we love to bank on in so many other areas (we shall be saved, for example) why not in the every day task of leading His Church.  It’s the same idea we see in James 1:5 where God promises us wisdom if we simply admit that we need it and then ask Him for it: “And it will be given to him.”

Please know that I am not suggesting that we ignore learning from one another, and even from others that we might have to pay to glean from their wisdom.  What I am saying though is this:  God knows our individual situations better than anyone else.  Maybe if we spend more time with Him, admitting that we need Him and taking every issue to Him, the path He shows us might be the most direct path to where He wants us to get! 

See you in St. Pete. 

Russell Johnson, IBB Miami