Has Preaching Become An Occupation Instead Of A Calling?

Volume 11 Issue 10

Greeting in His Name,

In October, many recognize their Pastors and spiritual leaders. That is AWESOME! But be mindful, my reading friends, not all Pastors or preachers are in this for the sake of your soul. I had to survey myself. Not so much for the sake of money or fame. But from the perspective, am I giving God my all? Sometimes it appears that the preaching experience has become an occupational hazard that infiltrates the preachers with a toxic spirit of gimme and entitlement. And not a spirit of it is my job to give the GOoD news so that someone can be saved. I said it in the last publication - there is nothing wrong with being blessed. But, preacher, would you still do it if you never got a dime? So with that being said, today's blog is entitled Has Preaching Become An Occupation Instead Of A Calling? Hope you find some inspiration, conviction, and queries.

shalom and love,

heidi

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While listening to a preacher go through her dialogue before preaching. My mind asked, 'has preaching become an occupation instead of a calling?' As I continued listening, I felt like I was in an infomercial. Instead of hearing an introduction to her message, I heard about every book and CD she had and autographed pictures of herself to hand out to those who made a purchase. Don't get me wrong; I'm not knocking advertising books, CDs, and other mediums that will help fund the ministry. But one thing we don't want is to make God's house a den of thieves. We want to respect the house of prayer. Ezekiel 34:1-2 exclaims, the word of the Lord came to me: "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord God: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? My! My! My! In that preacher's dialogue, I had to ask whether she was concerned about feeding the people or feeding herself.

Selfish Shepherds Beget… (Ezekiel 34:3 ESV)

You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep. (Ezekiel 34:3 ESV) The language in Ezekiel is very symbolic. The overall gist of what is being said is to Stop Being Greedy, which is in every sense of the word; you eat well, dress well, take the best, and leave the sheep to fend on their own. In all honesty, before the pandemic hit, many churches were filled with spiritually and physically starving Christians. And by golly, it's showing - people have yet to return. Many Christians are starving spiritually because most preachers were looking to be that Fortune 500 preacher than being that small rock that Christ called Peter. Upon which He told him He would build His church. More specifically, churches are starving physically because leaders are not held accountable for caring for the church wholistically. But, let's move back to the preacher mentioned earlier, and in listening to many others, we often get souped-up words to tickle our fancy but nothing to stick to hearts that would cause lifelong change. Preachers! Get it together! Do you not know that you're only an under-shepherd accountable to God the Chief Shepherd? Again I say, Get It Together!

Produce… Sick Sheep (Ezekiel 34:4 ESV) Am I Producing Sick Sheep?

The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them. (Ezekiel 34:4 ESV) Okay, preacher, do you hear your job description from the Father? God has ordained you to meet the needs of the weak, sick, injured, strayed, and lost. He has not ordained you to make money or show 'your' authority, but He has purposed that we use ministry to make disciples. And those disciples, if under a good shepherd-leader, will emerge into servants who will help the shepherd-leader to strengthen the weak, heal the sick, bind up the injured, call the strayed back, and look for those who are lost. The pandemic has surely caused some sheep to go AWOL. Are we intentionally seeking them? Are we diligently praying for their return? Or, in all honesty, did the pandemic expose the lack of care the sheep were receiving or needed? Gone say it, "OUCH."

Cause… Scattered Sheep (Ezekiel 34:5-6 ESV) Am I the Cause of Scattered Sheep?

So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered; they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them. (Ezekiel 34:5-6 ESV) I pondered, can a flock of sheep be scattered amid a church? Can a people be under authority, a shepherd-leader, and still be lost? In my thoughts, I saw people coming in wondering and left wandering. People who had no sense of direction because the shepherd-leader left them in the scattered brain predicament they came in. No vision for how to grow the sheep leads them to dry grass and desert places. It's time out for preaching me-ology and time to preach sound theology, a sound doctrine that will lead the people away from wild beast and into the arms of a safe Jesus.

Where MY Shepherds At!

I hear God petitioning us now; do I have a few GOoD shepherds? Do I have one who will truly use the power and authority bestowed upon them and not abuse it? Or you could be on the other end of the spectrum. You have the authority but you are not making a true effort to intentionally and strategically move your sheep forward. God desperately needs nurturing, caring, protective shepherd-leaders, not charismatic bullies trying to make things happen for themselves. If I seem angry, I am because I stand on this, Acts 1:8; God calls us to be witnesses. Spiritual witnesses of God's love for humankind, not political witnesses tied up in the drama of self-aggrandizement. When the church gleans from the healthy attitude of the first church in the book of Acts, our very purpose of existing will be reinstated, and that same power that fell, in the beginning, will fall afresh. So I ask again, "Has preaching become an occupation instead of a calling?" I hope not.

LIFE QUOTE

“We can build influence by self-promotion, but God will only promote those who do not promote themselves."

-Rick Joyner

Let Us Laugh!

One Sunday a cowboy went to church. When he entered, he saw that he and the preacher were the only ones present. The preacher asked the cowboy if he wanted him to go ahead and preach. The cowboy said, 'I'm not too smart, but if I went to feed my cattle and only one showed up, I'd feed him.' So the minister began his sermon. One hour passed, then two hours, then two-and-a-half hours. The preacher finally finished and came down to ask the cowboy how he liked the sermon. The cowboy answered slowly, 'Well, I'm not very smart, but if I went to feed my cattle and only one showed up, I sure wouldn't feed him all the hay.'

(https://www.funny-jokes.com/funny-christian-jokes.htm)

Hope to see you Next Month.... NOPE, I'll see you in a few days.

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