A pastor received this letter from a parishioner challenging the pastor’s obsessiveness about sermons:
“Dear Sir, it seems ministers feel their sermons are very important and spend a great deal of time preparing them. Over the last 30 years, I have probably heard 3,000 sermons, and I must say I cannot remember a single one of them.”
The pastor wrote this reply:
“Dear Sir, I have been married for 30 years. During that time, I have eaten 32,850 meals. I must say that I cannot remember the menu of a single meal. Yet I have the distinct impression that without them, I would have starved to death a long time ago.”
Over the years, my ministry has often focused on how to move through fear to new possibilities. The most common command given in all the scriptures is wrapped up in two words: “Fear not.”
Do not be afraid; be strong and courageous.
You can trust me, God says: “Fear not.”
Fear is something universal to humans. All of us wrestle with the issue of fear.
Over and over in the Bible, two different sets of people face the same situation and come up with different responses.
This is not new. When Moses sent 12 scouts to explore the Promised Land, 10 of them came back and said, “Yes, the land is great, but the enemies—those who defy God—are so powerful. We can never overcome them, so we can’t just trust God. We should go home.”
Two of the scouts, Joshua and Caleb, looked at the same land, saw the same enemies—I’m sure they experienced the same fears—and yet they said, “We should go to the Promised Land, for certainly we will be able to possess it with God’s help.”
Those 10 needed the two to help them move forward. I always want to be part of the two!
A young shepherd boy, David, brought supplies to his brothers who were serving in the army.
There, he saw what they saw: the great champion of the enemies of the people of God, named Goliath.
Goliath was a character straight out of the WWF.
Every day, he would go out and mock God. All the soldiers saw him and were terrified to challenge him.
David saw him and went after him with a slingshot—the same enemy.
Jesus and his disciples were in a boat when a storm came.
The disciples were so scared they were screaming in panic. Jesus, in the same boat, was so filled with peace that he was asleep at the bottom of the boat.
Again and again in Scripture, two sets of people face exactly the same situation.
So, what’s the difference? It’s not the situation. It’s not the circumstances. It’s the mindset—or, a better word, perspective.
Some see possibilities—some help others to see those possibilities.
My prayer each day is to see the possibilities first. Facts are important and must be considered. But often, even the facts can be turned inside out by God.
I can imagine when someone said to David, “Goliath is too big to conquer!” David’s retort must have been, “Well, that just means he is too big to miss!”
So, these days, I’m asking God to help me consider the facts but to lean on the character of God.
Our perspective matters.
What’s yours?
~James