THANK YOU, ZACHARY

As I begin to write this post, the last chapter, or last posting to my blog,  I sign off with a few ramblings or summaries in two or three areas.  First, I want to share my life verse.  It was after I completed my first year at Columbia International University in Columbia, South Carolina that I chose the following verse as my goal, my life verse.  I was introduced to the idea of choosing a life verse, that first year at CIU.  In the summer of 1955 I was asked to speak, one Sunday afternoon, at Thamesview Lodge, a nursing home in Chatham, Ontario.  As I was driving to the home, I was listening to Dr. Billy Graham, speaking on The Hour Of Decision radio broadcast.  In his message he quoted  Jeremiah 45:5.  When I heard that verse, I thought to myself, that is going to be my life's verse.

Back in 1955, the King James Version of the Bible was still the most popular and most quoted version in use.  Mr. Graham quoted from the KJV and my life's verse has been the KJV all through the years.  Here is the verse that has been with me for over 63 years.  It is only a portion of Jeremiah 45:5, but it has been my life verse.  "Seekest you great things for thyself?  Seek them not..."  

Zachary & Dan - 2018

The pastoral journey is not all sweet and nice.  There are many blessings along the way, but you need to also be prepared for some hurts and pains. It is like any other job that one may hold, there are the ups and downs, the good times and hard times. Let me cite a few of the hard times or disappointing times.  I was not told that I might face the following.

I was not told that some of my staff and elders would disappoint me and fall into sin.  I've had an associate pastor and elders who have had moral failures.  I think they all ended in divorce.

I've had members who were upset by something that happened in the church and they left the church for another.

Some members criticized anything and everything.  Not all members are satisfied with the church and its ministries.

You may find that some members will lie about you.  That's hard to take, when there is not one ounce of truth in what they say.

Some of the couples that I united in marriage, split up and divorced.

Some young people and young couples, who appeared to have it all together, went the way of the world and ceased to be a part of the church.

You may experience the odd person starting a small group and bringing in false teaching.

To balance off some of the foregoing statements of disappointment, let me mention some blessings.  I have had some very supportive staff and elders.  They were a great asset and very encouraging and supportive.  I've had many people who were deeply in love and committed to the ministries in the church.  They were great givers, financially, materially and spiritually.

I've seen a lot of happy marriages and committed young people and young couples.  In most churches I've witnessed the young going to Bible colleges and then eventually into some full-time Christian ministry.  They've gone into children's ministry, women's ministry, youth ministries, pastoral ministry both in the United States and Canada.  As for those who have gone into full time missionary work, they have and are still serving in Europe, various countries in Asia, Africa and South America.

I would be remiss if I did not say thank-you Zack, for asking me, about two years ago, to share my pastoral journey with you.  Had you not posed that question, this blog would never have been a reality.  For me, reflecting on the years past, and in particular my spiritual and pastoral journey, has been good medicine.  It has brought back many fond memories of God's leading in my life and reminded me often of an old hymn.  Here is the hymn.

All the way my Savior leads me

What have I to ask beside?
Can I doubt His tender mercy,
Who through life has been my Guide?
Heavenly peace, divinest comfort,
Here by faith in Him to dwell
For I know whate'er befall me
Jesus doeth all things well

All of the way my Savior leads me,

Cheers each winding path I tread,
Gives me grace for every trial,
Feeds me with the living bread.
Though my weary steps may falter
And my soul a-thirst may be,
Gushing from the Rock before me
Lo! a spring of joy I see.

All the way my Savior leads me,

Oh, the fullness of His love!
Perfect rest to me is promised
In my Father's house above.
When my spirit clothed immortal,
Wings its flight to realms of day,
This my song through endless ages:
Jesus led me all the way.

I said in an earlier post that I should mention some of the changes that I've seen in my lifetime.  In my 87 years, I have witnessed a lot of changes.  The world has been constantly changing and rapidly.  I have seen many changes in technology, education, health, eating habits, communications, transportation, dress and many more.  There is hardly anything in life that has not changed since the year that I was born.  I'm not alone in saying that some changes are liked.  Some changes are not liked.  Some changes strike fear and anxiety.

Let me share a few changes which I have seen in he world.  I remember seeing my Dad and uncles use a crank to start a car.  Today you can start an automobile by remote control.  There's also a lot of talk and a few cars that are driver-less cars.  In my younger years, Dick Tracy, with his two way wrist watch was a comic strip, so was Buck Rogers with his spacecraft.  Today these are realities.  I remember when I would wind up my grandparents Victrola to play a 78rpm record.  Today there is no end of a variety of devices for listening to music.  

Back in the 1940's my folks placed a call to my Aunt Lil, a missionary in Kenya, which cost $12.00 for three minutes.  That was possibly one third or one quarter of my Dad's pay for a week's work.  Today one can email, Skype, messenger etc for free, assuming one has paid for their internet connection. 

Not everyone had a camera, in my early years.  I bought my first camera when I was ten years old.  It was a Baby Brownie and cost me $1.60.  I could take eight pictures on one roll of film.  A film cost twenty-five cents.  I would take it to a photographer or a drug store and get it developed for another twenty-five cents.  Now the vast majority of people have a smart phone which is like a pocket computer with camera, etc, and most people are taking pictures, including selfies, with their phones.

Life expectancy has lengthened about two decades.  Lifestyles and social issues have changed.  The trend reflects the fact that marriage is increasingly becoming optional.  Common law and divorces are at an all time high.  I need not say more.  So much has changed it would fill pages to list them all.

There have also been numerous changes in the church.  I've seen so many of them since I assumed the position of pastor, sixty years ago this month.  Music is one of the big changes in the worship style.  I remember a church, where I was the pastor, and a young man, who was asked to sing a solo in church, wanted to accompany himself with his guitar.  That became an item on the elder's board agenda.  After some discussion at the board meeting, it was finally agreed to let him do so, but he could not sing in the morning service.  He was permitted to sing his solo, with his guitar, in the evening service.  Today, that church is very contemporary in their style of music.  The music pastor leads with a guitar, plus about three or four other guitarists play along with him and of course there is also a drummer.   

Dress style is another obvious change.  I had school clothes, play clothes and Sunday clothes, when I was young.  Today, some people wear the same thing all week and in many cases it is a pair of jeans.  In my early pastoral years, in addition to wearing a suit, dress shirt and tie every Sunday, I also wore a suit or sport jacket, shirt and tie during the week, whether I was in the office or in visitation.  There are a few churches in our area, but very few, where the pastors wear suits and ties.  Most pastors dress casually, as do most of the congregation.  The first time I ever saw a woman wear a pant suit to church was in the early 1970's. The first time I saw a man wear a pair of shorts to church was in California in 1984.

There are so many more changes in churches and in their ministries which could also fill several pages, were I to list them.  I'm only going to mention a couple more changes that I have witnessed.  The church calendar is quite different.  Most churches had a morning service and an evening service.  Few churches, that I know, have  an evening service any more.  Also a week of evangelism or a week of missions is no longer a common practice.  Fortunately, the gospel has not changed.  I continue to rejoice to see men and women, young and old, finding freedom and new life in Christ.  Sinners are still being saved.  Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever.  He is still inviting whosoever to come unto Him and receive eternal life.  He has never changed.  I should add, though that some churches, that were once very sound in their teaching and preaching, have compromised in some areas.

As I have reflected on my spiritual and pastoral journey, I've often thought that I wish I had done better, had read my Bible more, memorized more scriptures, prayed more often, shared the gospel with more people, etc.  Thinking about doing better, another old song came to mind.  It's entitled  I'll Wish I Had Given Him More."  The first stanza is:

By and by when I look on His face,

Beautiful face, thorn-shadowed face;

By and by when I look on His face,

I’ll wish I had given Him more

More, so much more —

More of my love than I e’er gave before.

By and by when I look on His face,

I’ll wish I had given Him more.

There are many things that I could share with you in this last post, however I will limit it to just one main thought.  The thought that I leave with you is found in an autograph which I received as a young boy, seventy-five plus years ago.

I was probably about ten or eleven years old, when I asked a young Salvation Army officer (pastor) to write in my autograph book.  This is what he wrote: "Give up anything for Jesus, but never give up Jesus for anything."  That statement has stayed with me in the decades since it was written.  We live in a world that is constantly tempting us to give up Jesus for the treasures and pleasures of this world.  First John 2:15 says: "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.  If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him."

This word world is not the world of nature, God's creation.  Psalm 19:1 says: "The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork."  So what world is John writing about?  He is writing about the ungodly system that is obviously in control.  Dr. Harry A. Ironside, a pastor in the early 20th century, said that the world "is that system that man has built up...in which he is trying to make himself happy without God."

Let me share a couple of other definitions of the word world by a couple of Christian leaders of years long in the past.  John Wesley said: "Whatever cools my affection toward Christ is the world."  Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman defined the world this way: "Anything that dims my vision of Christ, or takes away my taste for Bible study, or cramps my prayer life, or makes Christian work more difficult, is wrong for me and I must, as a Christian, turn away from it."

So the nugget that I want to leave with you, Zack, is simply this, don't let the world system be your guide or focus.  Focus on God.

Turn your eyes upon Jesus

Look full, in his wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim

In the light of his glory and grace

"Give up anything for Jesus, but never give up Jesus for anything." 

J. B. Phillips paraphrase of Romans 12:1, 2 reads: "With eyes wide open to the mercies of God, I beg you, my brothers, as an act of intelligent worship, to give Him your bodies, as a living sacrifice, consecrated to Him and acceptable by Him.  Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold, but let God re-mold your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God for you is good, meets all His demands and moves towards the goal of true maturity." 

A few days ago I read the following words in a devotional.  I share them with you.  Ovinius Paternus, who lived in the 3rd century, A.D. gave this advice to his son.  I share it with you, Zachary and all  of my family, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and all who are yet to be born... anyone and everyone who is reading this.  This was his advice:

"First of all, my child, think magnificently of God.  
Magnify His providence.  
Adore His power. 

Pray to Him frequently and incessantly.  
Bear Him always in your mind.  

Teach your thoughts to reverence Him in every place for there is no place where He is not.
Therefore, my child, fear and worship and love God; first and last, think magnificently of Him."