Jump Start # 3676

1 Thessalonians 5:14 “We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone.”

  I write this on a Wednesday morning. It is a specular fall day in Indiana. The sky is a vibrant blue. There are no clouds in the sky. The leaves are beginning to turn color. The air is cool and very calm. It’s a wonderful day here in Hoosier land. But as I write this, a massive hurricane is nearing the Florida coast. It is already raining heavily in that state. By nightfall, the winds will howl and water will bring destruction upon the beaches and many homes in that state. I have many friends in Florida. It is amazing that things can be so nice here and so many are running for their lives there. Calm here. Destructive there. Wonderful here. Life threatening there. All of this at the same time.

And, that contrast in weather reminds us of a greater contrast that runs through our congregations. We walk into the church building, with a smile on our faces, feeling good and looking forward to praising the Lord we love so much. Calm and wonderful could describe our state of mind, emotions and heart. Someone else walks in, and they are not cheerful. Their heart is full of fear. A loved one lies in the hospital and the end is near. For someone else, it’s an intense and even angry look upon his face. He’s had it at work. He is so tried of being overlooked, mistreated and taken advantage of. In the morning, he will give his two week notice. How will he take care of his family, he contemplates. Numbers are racing through his mind and he is thinking about what options he has. A mother walks in on a Sunday morning, and she has the look of worry on her face. She doesn’t want to admit it, but deep inside she thinks her son is using drugs. There are too many signs and too many things that just don’t add up. How will she handle this, she wonders. Someone else walks in, and they are afraid of God. They have made terrible choices and they fear that they will not be welcomed. How could God forgive someone like me, this person thinks.

Calm and beautiful in Indiana and stormy and destructive in Florida. What an important lesson for us:

First, not everyone who steps into the church building on Sunday is in a good mood or even wants to be there. It’s easy to assume that everyone feels the way I feel. The weather in one part of the country is not the same in another part, at the same time. Later in the year, as we will be freezing our giblets here in Indiana, it will be short sleeve weather in Florida.

Some walk into the church building confused and uncertain about things. Some walk in with a chip on their shoulder. Some are scared. Some are happy. Some don’t feel well. Some hurt, in their joints and in their soul.

Bubbly, cheerful and over the top happy, can annoy and irritate those who are experiencing a storm in their lives. There can be some jealousy taking place. Be sensitive to the pains of others.

Second, be careful with what you say. Remember Job’s friends sat for a week and didn’t say anything. That’s one of the best things that we can do. Silence can be golden. Telling someone to “snap out of it,” is likely to get a snappy response in return. Just handing someone a verse doesn’t solve all the problems they are facing. For many of these situations, it is a journey and that journey can be long.

You can tell someone that you are glad that they are there. You can invite them to sit with you. You can ask them if they would like to go out to eat with you. Be ready to accept a decline in the offer and don’t pressure them to change their minds. Give them some space. If they accept, you pay their bill, because you invited them, and you don’t spend the meal talking about yourself or the problems you have had. Let them lead. If they want to talk about something else, follow that. If they want to talk about the issues in their life, listen, be kind, be helpful.

Third, remember the golden rule. The next time, it might be you who are the one who is not feeling so great. There may be storm clouds building in your life. What would you want others to do for you? Think about that. And, always pray.

Sunny in Indiana and stormy in Florida. I’ve never experienced a hurricane. We have tornados. They are destructive, but they move fast and most times, narrow in their paths. I’ve never had to evacuate. What to take, what to leave behind, what hard choices. I’ve never left, wondering if my house would be there when I returned. I don’t have hurricane experience to my repertoire. Likewise, I have never buried a child. I have never experienced a divorce. I have never been laid off. I may not understand the fear or the pain that someone else is going through. It may be hard for me to imagine. But I can and should care. I should listen. I should be there if they need me.

We may not experience the same weather, but we can sympathize, pray and be concerned for those who are enduring storms. This is true of our weather and it is true of life. Knowing that others are there is a comfort and a peace that helps. Knowing that the Lord is near, is the greatest peace.

Sunny and stormy…what lessons we can learn.

Roger

Jump Start # 3502

1 Thessalonians 5:14 “And we urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all men.”

I have a young friend who really loves Jesus. She is a disciple. However, she has a problem. She cuts herself. She knows she shouldn’t do this. It took her a long time to be able to tell me that. She has come a long way in this journey. There are weeks that she does great. Then there are times when she really wants to cut herself. We talk about this and I try to help her.

I have shared this Jump Start with her before I ever published it. I wanted her to read this first. She, as so many of us, have issues that we are dealing with. This journey with the Lord can be very long and hard. She has professional help, for which I am very thankful. I recognize that I’m just a preacher. Any counseling I give is from that perspective.

For a long time I have wanted to write about this. I believe she is in a place now where I can share some thoughts.

First, it is hard to know what each of us are going through. Most would be shocked to know. While one is dealing with cutting, there is another who struggles with porn, and another who fights the love of money, and another has real anger issues. We do a pretty good job of wearing masks and keeping these things hidden. We do this because we are ashamed. We do this because we fear what others might think. Often, we have had a bad experience with someone gossiping or instead of lending a listening ear, they used the moment to judgmentally point fingers at us. Like Job’s friends, they made things worse. It shouldn’t be that way, but it is. It could be that we have created an atmosphere of perfection within our congregations, even though no one lives up to that. And, that high standard that we don’t reach makes us feel that we are failures. We feel that we let God down. We feel that we are letting others down. All around us are people like us who are a work in progress, but they don’t seem that way to us. They seem perfect. The only one that is not perfect is ourselves. We are perfectly imperfect. In fact, if all the cards were on the table, many of us feel that if the shepherds really knew, they’d be talking about withdrawing from us.

In most situations, that is the last thing that would happen, but we have that fear. We struggle silently. This is where many of us are. Rather than in the fellowship of the godly, we’d put ourselves on the island of misfit toys. We doubt our salvation. We want to go to Heaven, but deep inside, we are not sure we’ll make it. We are good at putting on smiles, and telling others what they want to hear, but deep, deep inside we struggle. Anger. Fear. Doubt. Addictions. Troubles. When those things surface, we tailspin.

For my friend, it’s punishing herself by hurting herself.

Second, in our lowest moments, when we feel that we have hurt God so much, He truly loves us so much. It’s hard to understand. There are times when we don’t love ourselves, but God still does. Like any addiction, it’s hard to get off the merry-go-round. We sometimes feel that we have to get this all figured out before we can come back to God. But that is just what Satan wants us to believe. Get fixed, then come home to the Lord. But what we have found out, is that on our own, we are stuck on that cycle. We can’t get off. We must have the Lord’s help. His grace, His power, His promises, His expectations for us, His word, that’s what will bring about changes. That’s what will break the cycle. That’s what will help us.

Thirdly, cutting, porn, addictions, are really surface issues of something greater. We are looking for instant gratification. We want to punish ourselves for what we have done. We are looking at the moment and not long term. While we struggle and fight these surface problems, they remain, until we dive deeper and do some real surgery on our hearts. God created us for better. This is not the way God wants you to live. Shame, guilt and embarrassment are the way of Satan.

Sometimes the hardest person to forgive is yourself. If God will forgive you, then you must forgive you. The problem isn’t cutting, alcohol, pills, porn, gambling, but  faith. When we turn to these things, we are looking in the wrong direction. These things will never last and never bring what we truly need. We must believe that we can break free from these habits. We must believe that God hasn’t and won’t give up on us.

Instead of trying to live an entire lifetime today, get through each day. Set specific goals. Change your environment, friends and culture that allows you to dip into these addictions so easily. Be accountable to someone nearby. Fill your heart with the word of God. Be led by the Spirit.

Find someone that you can trust that will guide you to God. Forget worthless friends of the world. They are no help. You need solid, spiritual disciples who will listen, be honest and not give you a pass because you complain. Not everyone is like that. Be careful who you talk to. And, if someone comes to you in such confidence, be a person of integrity and honor their request and help them. Don’t tell others.

Fourth, do not give up. Satan wants you to believe that this is just going to be your way of life. He wants you to accept that you cannot conquer your problems. He wants you to think that you will never please the Lord. Stop believing that junk. Listen to God. He believes in you. He knows you can do better. He is pleased with you and wants you to live a life of glory and honor. Hold your head up.

Satan won’t give up easily. He’ll fight you. He’ll throw everything at you. But greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. Believe that. Know that. One day, you’ll be able to help others. One day, you’ll be the one who understands, because you’ve been there. One day, you’ll be on the other side and you’ll be triumphant in the Lord. It will happen. Just stay with the Lord.

We are in this together and we need each other. As our passage says today, let us help one another. The unruly needs to be admonished. The fainthearted needs encouragement. The weak need help. And, we need to be patient with everyone. While today, you may be the one who is helping, tomorrow you may be the one who is in need of help. Remember that. As important as it is to help others, it is equally important to receive help. Drop the pride. Open up. Let others walk with you. Lean on them. As the Hollies sang, “He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother.” And, so we are.

We are in this together…and, together, with God’s help, we’ll make it.

Roger

Jump Start # 3326

1 Thessalonians 5:14 “And we urge you brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all men.”

I stopped by our local vet the other day to pick up some medicine for our cat, more accurately, my wife’s cat. While I was waiting, there came in a dog to be groomed. Another dog was wearing the cone of shame around it’s neck. Another dog was limping. It looked like the walking wounded in that place. I just needed the medicine and I’d be out of there. But everyone had different needs for their pets. And, as our verse states, so it is among us. There is not just one prescription that fits all.

It is important to distinguish between unruly, fainthearted and weak. There are specific actions directed towards each one and if one mixes them up, just like getting the wrong medicine, disaster happens. The unruly, is rebellious. The word means out of step. They need to be admonished. If you encourage the unruly, off they go. But the fainthearted needs encouragement, not a warning. Mix that up and you’ll crush the fainthearted.

Just because someone doesn’t attend well, doesn’t tell us the reason. Is he weak? Is he sacred? Is he a rebel and defiant? Which is it? Guess wrong and you’ll make a mess. How does one know? Conversations, that’s where it must begin.

Let’s focus upon helping the weak. Weak is not a good place to be. A weak back. Weak tea. Weak knees. A weak heart. None of those are favorable. None of those are what a person wants. The reason a person is weak is obvious, they are not strong. A weak faith, is vulnerable to temptation, error and giving up. A weak faith won’t help much through the trials of life. A weak faith won’t drive out worry and fear. It’s much more than attendance, it’s a heart that is focusing upon the Lord. It’s walking with Jesus every day. It’s faith building. It’s connecting. It’s growing.

The concern that every dedicated disciple has is how do you get weak Christians stronger? Some thoughts:

First, many weak Christians would never see themselves as being weak. If a person took a sip of water and then took a sip of three-day old tea, he’d tell the difference. The tea is different than the water, but it’s very weak. And, as long as the weak maintain more connections with the world, they will seem a little different. Not much, just a little. And, that’s all it takes for them to believe that they are ok.

The words to the Ephesians were, “be strong,” and, “stand firm.” That’s not the weak. Getting them to see that there is so much more that they could be enjoying and experiencing is important. It’s like trying to ride a bike without the training wheels. Most of us had a parent guiding us as we wobbly pedaled down the street. They ran along side of us and eventually let go as we tried to maintain our balance. We crashed a time or two, but they were there to help us. We went through that routine over and over until we could safely ride without crashing. Someone was there to help us. That’s that the weak need. It’s not a spiritual spanking on Sunday. Guilting them doesn’t work. They need you to show them. They need you to guide them. They are not the ones who will read blogs, listen to podcasts, or come to special studies. You see the value. So, invite someone to join you in that. Help them. That’s the encouraging part.

Second, most weak Christians understand the need for Jesus, it’s just that other things tend to get in the way. School projects. Work. Family. This and that. It’s not that they don’t love Jesus, it’s that He’s simply not at the top of the list. They won’t drop all, stop all, give up all, for Jesus. If it’s convenient, they’ll be there. If nothing else much is going on, they will engage in spiritual activities. But where there are other things, spiritual matters get bumped lower on the list of priorities.

There are differing degrees of weakness. Some barely have their big toe in the water and they are already complaining. Others have a bit more spiritual life in them. Some are progressing. Some are going the other way. Weak is a term that can describe many levels of spiritual apathy, inactivity and lack of enthusiasm. One must be careful not to use too broad of a brush when generalizing about weak.

Helping the weak get their order in order is the key here. Mary and Martha. Martha was doing good. Mary was doing the best. Martha was serving. Mary was sitting. Martha was taking care of the belly. Mary was taking care of the soul. Often, most times, it’s not a matter of right and wrong, but of what is good and what is the best. Getting folks to see what is the best, is simply the best.

Third, weakness is not a permanent condition. One doesn’t have to be weak. Most of us started off new and fairly weak. That’s the way babies come into the world. But we grew. We got stronger. Painting a picture of what could be is something some never see. One day, you could teach a class. One day, you could be a greeter. One day you could be a deacon. One day, you could. So many struggles in the heart and in the home are resolved when one is strong in the Lord. There never is a debate in our house about should we go to worship or not? That’s already been decided. That’s an absolute. There are some things that are just off the table and do not need to even be discussed. Cuss in my house and I’ll kindly correct you. Do it again and I’ll show you the door. Don’t even try to bring booze into my house. Won’t happen. Those are things that have been decided when I decided to put Jesus first in my life. I was walking out a store the other day. I saw an older couple putting money into a lottery machine. They were buying tickets. Did I stop and stand in line behind them? Nope. What a waste. That issue has already been decided. Not for me.

The weak struggle with such things. They bounce in and out of the world and in and out of Christ. They haven’t made their minds up on some things. They could go either way. They need lessons. They need to learn. They need encouragement. They need to be strong. They need examples.

Help the weak. Don’t complain about them. Don’t give up on them. Don’t drive them away. Help them.

Roger

Jump Start # 2903

1 Thessalonians 5:14 ‘And we urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all men.”

I certainly like this verse. I use it often, very often, when I teach about shepherding. And, every time I look at this verse, there is yet another layer of insight and instruction that I’ve never seen before. Let me share some thoughts from this passage.

First, God designed the church as a self-sufficient and closed system. Here is what I mean by that. When we do not feel well, the first thing we do is go to our medicine cabinet and take what we think we need. But a day or two later, if we are getting worse, we realize that there is nothing in our medicine cabinet that can help us, so we make an appointment with our doctor. He looks us over and often prescribes some medicines that we didn’t have at home. If we still do not get better, it’s back to the doc, more tests. Sometimes all of this involves going to the hospital for even more procedures, IVs and tests. We are limited at home at what we can do.

The same goes for our cars. There was a time when many of us changed our own spark plugs and oil. But cars are so complicated today, using advanced computer chips, that when something goes wrong with our car, we have to take it to the shop. It is beyond what we can do.

But here within the Thessalonian church, the unruly, the fainthearted and the weak could and would be cared for by the members there. All within that church was the tools necessary to help. Paul didn’t call upon them to reach out to the Philippian church for help. Paul didn’t tell them to send out the word to others and find experts who could help them. No. Everything they needed was among them. That is how God designed the church. When it is functioning well, it is capable of taking care of itself.

Second, for this to be effective and practical, disciples have to step up and get connected and be involved. You notice that our passage is not addressed to shepherds. Much like Galatian 6, the restoration of lives is being done by those who  are spiritual. This means people have to take the attention and focus off of themselves. It means that they have to get involved in the lives of others. It means that they can’t hide behind the idea of “it’s not my job.” There would be no outsiders coming in to help them. There would be no team of doctors, mechanics or advisors coming to repair and fix what was broken. If the Thessalonians did not do this, no one would. God was counting upon them to step up and to do what needed to be done.

Third, to get to the level of admonishing unruly and encouraging fainthearted, there would have to be some who developed spiritually, became mature and had the heart of both a servant and a leader. If everyone was unruly, there would be no one to admonish them. If everyone was fainthearted, there would be no one to encourage.

And, while this passage identities that we are not all in the same place and we don’t all need the same things, some among us must be leaders who are not afraid to admonish nor encourage. They care for these people and they care for the church. The role of admonishing and encouraging is very different. One is to warn and the other is to build up. In doing that powerful work, others may be developed these to later serve. Not only are we not all in the same place at the same moment, but it is essential that leaders are able to distinguish and recognize the characteristics of one who is out of step and one who is fainthearted. The outward look may seem the same. Maybe neither one is attending. The rebel says, “You can’t tell me what to do.” The scared, has worries and fears. Both are not attending, but it’s for very different reasons. Who is going to recognize that difference? It would be those at Thessalonica that were spiritually strong and in step with the Lord.

Now, what happens when no one in the congregation steps up? What happens when there is no one to warn others? What happens when there is no one to encourage others? The church suffers. It begins to fall apart. Near my house is an old barn. One can see through the sides of the barn. By and by, some of the planks are falling off the sides. The roof is sagging. It’s pretty obvious what’s going to happen down the road. One day when I pass by, there won’t be a barn standing. There will be a pile of wood and nails. Internally, this is what happens to many churches today. Too many are holding out for a preacher to come in and solve all their problems. That usually never happens. They are looking for someone to do what they are supposed to do. And, in far too many cases like this, there is no one who has stepped up spiritually. There is no one who leads. There is no one who is mature enough. The church crumbles because there was no one to help.

Now, all of this points to our role. Are we going along for a ride or are we helping out and doing what we can? Who will warn the unruly? Who will encourage the fainthearted? Who will help the weak? The help isn’t coming from the outside, it must come from within. It comes from us.

Roger

Jump Start # 2777

1 Thessalonians 5:14 “We urge you brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone.”

It is often good in life to take a step back, catch your breath and see the big picture of things. When that is done, a better perspective takes place and one truly sees how blessed he is. Our problems can seem big, and often they are. But all around us, God has built a network of support, help and encouragement. The church is amazing. Living examples all around us. Wonderful reminders of the thoughts, attitudes and walk that we ought to have. So many lessons taught, so much depth, so much good.

We see this in our verse today. The unruly, the fainthearted, and the weak, were not on their own. They were not voted out, cut loose, or left to figure things out. Others would be there. They would slow down and help them along. I see the image of an injured football player. The team doesn’t stand on the sidelines and watch that player crawl to the sidelines, struggling and in pain. Absolutely not. Never. Trainers, coaches and other players pick him up and support him and help him limp to the sidelines. He is not on his own.

There are two powerful O.T. stories of those who were on their own. We teach their stories and we love to hear lessons about their lives, but what an advantage you and I have with each other.

First, is the Joseph factor. Abandoned by his family. Falsely accused. Character attacked. Punished for something he didn’t do. Forgotten. And, yet the Joseph story is one of love, forgiveness and grace. He was not bitter. He was not cruel. Revenge was not in his heart. But Joseph did that without receiving cards in the mail to encourage him. He chose that without having a church bulletin to read. He didn’t have blogs, podcasts, sermons and a fellowship of like brethren who were praying for him. Not Joseph. He was alone. He was on his own. No help, except from God. No encouragement except what he could find by himself. No one to counsel him. No one to remind him. No one to teach him. No one to tell him the right thing to do.

And, when we think about Joseph and all the right choices he made, he did that without any help. It shames us to think that you and I are surrounded with so much help, but we don’t do as well as Joseph did. We get bitter. We complain. We make the wrong choices. We are unable to forgive. And, this with a mountain of sermons, classes, people, and help around us. It sure makes us wonder what God thinks about us. We think the journey is so hard, yet we have so many supporting us, patting us on the back, and helping us. We have the N.T. and the examples of Jesus. Joseph didn’t have that. We have the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians and the picture of the new man in Ephesians and Colossians. Joseph didn’t have those. How could Joseph do what he did with no help? And, why can’t we do better with so much help? Sure makes one think.

Second, the David factor. David and an army of 600 were being chased about the country by King Saul. While they were on the run, invaders came and kidnapped all their families. Wives and children were gone when they returned home. The men were so low, heart broken and defeated that they planned to kill David. And, right there in that context, the Bible says that “David strengthened himself.” David encouraged himself. He didn’t have someone to pray with him. He didn’t have someone to send him a card with a nice verse written on it. He didn’t have a preacher to talk to. He didn’t have kind messages on his Facebook page. He didn’t have a video sermon to watch. Alone and in trouble, David strengthened himself. Much like Joseph, David didn’t have a church thinking about him. He was on his own. It was just David and his faith. It was just Joseph and his faith.

So, maybe it’s time we lifted our heads up and stop feeling defeated by pandemics, isolation and the disruption of things. Sure things are not the way we’d like them to be, but none of us are on our own, unless we have chosen that. You can find wonderful sermons to listen to everyday of the week. There are daily reminders, through these Jump Starts, Quick Quotes, on line video classes to help you. You can pick up your phone can call a number of brethren. Through email you can connect with God’s family worldwide.

When I think of the Joseph and David factors, it sure humbles me. It makes we think why do I feel that things are so tough. God is good and through the network and fellowship that He designed, we are never truly alone. Help is there, if you reach out for it. Sometimes we must let others know. Sometimes we need to drop a few hints. Sometimes we need to ask others to pray for us. And, they will. You will never be left alone on the field, wounded and having to crawl off on your own. God’s people will come running. You will never be alone like Joseph or David.

So, let us be thankful for what we have. Let us be there for others. Let us come running to let them lean upon us. Let us stay connected, close and spiritual. We have one another and that’s a wonderful thing. Bless be the tie that binds our hearts…

Roger