Last Man Standing (A Declaration)

I'm gonna be there. I'm not gonna miss it. I'm talking about meeting Jesus and hearing, "Well done, good and faithful servant." (Close your eyes and picture it in your mind.) I will do whatever it takes. I will be filled with the Holy Spirit and continue to be filled. (Ephesians 5:18) I will lay off the sin that so easily entangles. (Hebrews 12:1) I will believe like the Bible says to believe. (John 3:16) I will trust in, cling to and rely on the Lord Jesus to save and keep me. I will commit Scripture to memory. I will meditate on God's Word and actively pursue it's application in my life. (Matthew 4:4) I will do what's right even when it's not popular or convenient to do so. I will worship in the secret place and not for the applause of men. (Matthew 6:5-6) I will endure persecution, ridicule, rejection for His great name. (Lord, help me, too.) I will suffer for the Gospel's sake. (Philippians 3:10) I will submit to the loss of finances and the insecurity that can bring (but I am more than secure in Christ). I will meet people's needs as I would my Lord's. (Matthew 25:35-36) I will be the last man standing. With me? (Picture of the 1944 landing at Omaha Beach in the public domain: HERE.)

No Ministry Less Than Worthwhile

My brothers and sisters, this is now the second of three in a “Best of Pastor’s notes” series that I thought I might offer these last three Sundays of me being with you. The first was from the last century you might recall (January 10, 1999!). Today’s is from this one – April 21, 2002 to be exact. I especially appreciate what follows because it really puts things in perspective. Beloved, there is no work for Jesus that’s less than worthwhile. And don’t you ever forget it! Here’s the note:

“[There was a] faithful pastor who was told by his superior that something was wrong with his work. The supervisor told him, ‘Only one person has been added to your church this year, and he is only a boy.’ Later that day, heavy of heart, the pastor was praying when someone walked up behind him. Turning around, he saw the same boy – his only convert that year. The boy said, ‘Pastor, do you think I could become a preacher or missionary some day?’ The pastor encouraged him to pray and seek God about it. The lad was Robert Moffit who was destined to open Africa to the Gospel of Christ. Years later when Moffit spoke in London, a young doctor heard him say, ‘I have seen in the morning sun the smoke of a thousand villages where no missionary has ever been.’ The young doctor, deeply moved by Moffit’s message, was none other than David Livingstone. In 1840, he sailed for Africa where he labored for Jesus for more than three decades – all of this happened because a faithful pastor encouraged his ‘one convert.’” (contributed by Bruce Howell to sermoncentral.com)