The Church – PaulThompsonBlog

Come and Get Me Next!

Posted on February 22, 2021Leave a comment

“Come and get me next!”

This is what every pastor in Canada, and the USA, should say this coming Lord’s day as they unlock their church house, and every born-again believer should say while exchanging their pajamas for their Sunday best as they prepare to gather in person on the Lord’s Day.

I’m convinced we need to stop saying we are living in unprecedented times and should rather call the day unpredictable. I don’t know of many people who could have predicted this would be happening in North America. However, this would be more accurate and in accord with the normal Christian life around the world. The problem is that the God-hating world doesn’t understand that Romans 13 is not theirs to interpret according to their philosophy.

This past Lord’s day, James Coates, pastor of GraceLife Church in Alberta, Canada, spent his day behind bars (and still is) because he, and his church, refused to comply with government mandates that unnecessarily restrict the gathered people of God. Seen by some as an act of civil disobedience, I call it humble obedience to the Almighty God who holds sovereign authority of the church.

The western church needs to be reminded of the days when the church was on the vanguard or at the tip of the spear of the great gospel advancing days of the last missionary expanse to the ends of the earth.

Think about it… when have you heard or seen a faithful shepherd say anything like C.T. Studd in his missionary article “the Chocolate Soldier”.

“In peace true soldiers are captive lions, fretting in their cages. War gives them their liberty and sends them, like boys bounding out of school, to obtain their heart’s desire or perish in the attempt. Battle is the soldier’s vital breath! Peace turns him into a stooping asthmatic. War makes him a whole man again, and gives him the heart, strength, and vigor of a hero.”
C.T. Studd

Battle cures the asthmatic church from her gasping for life. When the church forgets her duty and takes off her gospel shoes she will soon be a melted goo of chocolate because she set her shield down while getting too close to the flame and can no longer hold the shape of her former condition.

Are your gospel shoes in the back corner of the closet? Maybe you donated your gospel shoes to the Salvation Army? This much is most likely true, your gospel shoes have likely never been worn on the battlefield.

Finally, I want to lovingly say to my brother pastors who are not holding in-person gatherings. It’s time to relocate the keys to the church house and open the doors. There is a brother who has been found obeying God and charged by men as being a danger to society. I refuse to let this kind of brother stand alone on that field.

I’m praying for you. I’ve got you covered. You are not on the battlefield alone.

The Ancient Paths

Posted on May 30, 2018Leave a comment

(Submitted column for the Times News for Saturday, June 2, 2018)

The church is among the most unique institutions created by God.

Marriage is an ordained institution by God for procreation and the glorification of God for the proclamation of the gospel. Family is a result of this first institution where parents train and teach their children to walk in the fear and admonition of the Lord.

The church is then this blessed institution where the gathered fellowship of individuals, married couples, and families constitute the united effort of advancing the gospel of the Lord Jesus the Christ to the ends of the earth.

Often in churches there is a celebration of those who are innovative thinkers. There is much made about people who “think outside the box”, so to speak.. This doesn’t mean a church shouldn’t exercise good thinking and planning about how to get the gospel to those who don’t have it yet or express thoughts and worship with old and new songs. This does, however, mean that churches must consider what they’ve been instructed to do.

Can you imagine that a soldier is instructed to carry out a command and instead of doing it how he was instructed, he decided to do it more creatively? He would not be a soldier for very much longer. It doesn’t mean that his idea was a bad idea, it means he didn’t follow the instructions of his commanding officer.

Can you imagine if a catcher on a baseball team decided it would work better if he stood behind second base instead of the assigned place the coach put him? He wouldn’t remain in the game much longer, or his team would lose every game for the remainder of the season while this so called “creative innovator” rewrote the game.

This is similar in the church.

Sadly, many pastors and churches have bought into a new clever methodology that is secular and worldly. Pastors get recognized today for doing what no other pastor has ever decided to do, rather than being faithful to what the Bible calls the “ancient paths”.

A problem is that many think the word “ancient” means old, wore out, outdated, or old fashioned. Ancient could mean that if the previous generation introduced new innovative ideas that are now more like a clothing fashion or have treated their duties like a coat of paint on a wall that needs refreshed from generation to generation because the popular color then is now out of date.

But the institution of the church is not like this.

Maybe the church house needs a fresh update. But the core of the institution is immutable. It doesn’t need a change and should not change.
A church that strives to remain faithful to Scripture and let the Holy Spirit use this ancient Scripture to conform God’s people is met with opposition among the new “innovators”.

The Holy Bible says that the word of God is “living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword” (Hebrews 4:12). Churches and pastors who get this may face criticism from those who think there may be a better way.

Churches and pastors must become more disciplined today to remain faithful to this eternal work.

There is nothing better than a soldier who does what he’s been trained to do. There’s no better way to guard the home plate than a catcher who endures the heat, sweat, dust, and pain of doing what the coach trained him to do. There’s no better aid to a community than for a church and her pastor to be “the pillar and buttress of truth” by returning to the ancient path of Scripture.

Bless the Lord for churches in the Magic Valley who get this and may God bless these churches with pastors who will faithfully do their duty.

The Evangel

Posted on September 26, 2017Leave a comment

Anyone who claimed September 23, 2017 as the end of the world and used the bible to prove their position should be viewed as a false prophet.

Church, discipline yourself to put our primary work in front of us and be faithful to the work of the evangel (the gospel). Date setting is no new thing and we should expect that as dates come and go that a more predictable pattern is that date setters will be required to adjust and reinterpret their claims.

Yes, we should give ourselves to reading Scripture and noticing that the time must be near, but be sure not to get distracted with that which will distract from the Gospel. Give yourself rather to living a life devoted to the Lordship of Christ in your life and speaking the grace of God in His gospel to all.

Date setting the unknown things of God is irresponsible evangelism.

Give yourself to responsible evangelism. Proclaiming the truth of God, the nature of humanity, the redeeming work of Christ, and the required response to this truth; this is our great duty.

Here are a few things I see that normally happens when the date setters gain popularity and their dates pass by…

They will claim they overlooked a particular calculation.
They will say “I didn’t actually say…”
They will bring other verses into the conversation that they didn’t use or see previously.
They will call planets stars or give vague dogmatic comments such as “this kind of connection gives me goose bumps just thinking about it.”
They will eventually re-date to another date without any consideration to what God says about those who presumptuously speak on His behalf in Deuteronomy 18:22

“When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.” (Deuteronomy 18:22)

Give yourself to the advancing of the evangel (the Gospel).

Prayer for the Next Generation

Posted on January 2, 2017Leave a comment

In the Lord’s way and in the Lord’s timing, He has blessed and is blessing Eastside Baptist Church with a generation of Children.

Never in the history of Eastside Baptist Church has there been a season quite like this one.

Five years ago Eastside asked God Almighty to forgive her of trusting in the methodologies of men and began a renewed path to trust in the Lord by trusting the sufficiency of Scripture as our primary instruction for training our children; meaning we stopped all age graded segregation of our children, we stopped providing ongoing systematic separation of children from parents when families gathered together on the Lord’s Day.

It felt strange at first, many were confused about what we were doing (and still are), some thought we don’t care about children and youth.

Today, God has has given us more children than we’ve ever had and more children than we could ever build facility for if we still segregated the children.

I want to share with you a short moment in yesterday’s (1/1/2017) gathering. We committed and recommitted ourselves to the duty God has given us, the church, and the family.

Here is a short clip from that gathering yesterday when we committed ourselves unto the Lord in our duty to obey Him.

Today, Eastside Baptist is committed to the Lord to obey him with respect to every child given to her duty both here and abroad. Locally, thirty-eight children belong to families of Eastside Baptist and forty-five children in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Over eighty children under direct order of God to teach and instruct.

We can do it our way or God’s way. We are slaves of God, so we choose to do it God’s way regardless of the outcome.

May God help us to obey Him.

Reformation – An Ongoing Work

Posted on September 19, 20161 Comment

Is there a difference in revival and reformation?

Fundamentally, yes.

Where they feel similar, the work of revival is what God brings and the work of reformation is what God empowers men to do.

500 years ago Martin Luther ignited a movement that we now call the great reformation, but he was not the first, only or even (hopefully not) the last reformer. As I’m preaching through the books of the Kings the historian lays out seasons of both revival and reformation in the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah.

Revival means there is an awakening of people to their spiritual concerns, a return or recovery of a state of neglect. Restoration of life.
To reform means to change from worse to better; to amend; to correct; to restore to a former good state. To remove what is bad or corrupt. To abandon that which is evil or corrupt, and return to a good state. To be corrected

One can see there is similarity and even could be misinterpreted for each other. Maybe even fair to do so. But reform is more the activity done by those who have been revived.

Anyone with settled habits or vice will seldom reform. When there are many who don’t want to reform the reformers will be faced with great opposition. If a reformer is not aware of this he may likely give up too early on the reforming work while waiting for the profound work of the Holy Spirit in reviving those who have settled into their habits and vice.

Reforming work is very slow work. Many times the reformers are silenced, removed, ridiculed, mocked, slandered, hunted, etc. It is a blessed sight to see the Holy Spirit move in the hearts of men and women today in many places who are aiming at the same reforming work in the Lord’s church. There is a revival of sorts of expository, biblical preaching in our day. It will require more revived preachers to sustain the reforming work.

Church, we must call out from among our churches more reformers. Reformers equipped and informed of the hardship that is before them.

LORD’s Day Sermon, September 18, 2016

Public Bathroom Use Is Not the Issue

Posted on April 21, 2016Leave a comment

Who’s America are we living in? What is happening right before our very eyes? I have many things to say and all of them are being said by many others as well, but what woman in the nation, in her right thinking mind would feel safe in a public shared bathroom at Target? And what parent thinks it would be a good idea?

Is our government really spending time writing laws to give men the right to use women’s bathrooms and changing rooms?

Are public schools really giving confused boys permission to use girls bathrooms?

Well, this is our America and it is reason for the church to be the church.

I just finished reading a very good article by Jason Allen, president of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, entitled “5 Keys to Cultivating Biblical Manhood in Your Church.” I highly recommend for you to take the time to read it. You’ll be encouraged by what Dr. Allen has to say. Send a link of this post to your pastor in case he hasn’t read it yet.

Here are a few short excerpts to show you why you need to read this article. Share this with as many pastors you know. Thank you Dr. Allen for this good article and ministry you give to the local church.

“…as Christians our primary concern is not the country or the culture—it is the home and the church. If the latter are healthy, the former will be healthier.”

“The Corinthian church had men – or rather, males – but not MEN. And it was ruinous. When men don’t act like men, the church’s spiritual infrastructure collapses.There is a defined role of leadership, authority, and protection men in the church must play. For them, and their roles, there is no substitute. When they are absent from the call of duty, disaster follows. That is why the church must work to strengthen its men and seek to cultivate biblical manhood within the congregation.”

“…as preachers, we must be committed to preaching the text of Scripture—whatever it calls us to say—and preaching it with authority. Men need an authoritative word. Weak preaching makes weak men. Small preaching never moves men to great commitment.”

“…as preachers, we must maintain clarity in our churches in relation to gender roles. This clarity should accompany both form and function.”

“Can society flourish with a diminishing masculinity and the virtual disappearance of men? I think not. More urgently, can the church flourish without the reappearance of men? Absolutely not. Brother pastors, let us recommit ourselves to raising up a generation of godly men, ready to lead and serve the bride of Christ.”

– See more at: http://jasonkallen.com/2016/04/5-keys-to-cultivating-biblical-manhood-in-your-church/?utm_content=buffer33c6e#sthash.74JTa4h2.dpuf

Domestic Abuse

Posted on April 19, 20162 Comments

Several things are clear when it comes to the church and abuse in the home: the church really isn’t prepared to know what to do. It’s almost like she doesn’t even want to know.

Let me say this first and then I’ll move into a post that is really more of a discussion starter for me.

The reason I address the issue of domestic abuse in the first place is because I’ve been in both private discussion and shared public thoughts regarding a minister who has been accused of domestic abuse (even though the matter was not legally prosecuted, there is a public record of past abuse.) It will not surprise anyone that I’m referring to Saeed Abedini. A brother in Christ that many across the nation has prayed for while he suffered in prison for more than three years. It was right that we prayed for him and we should not let the current status of his marriage keep us from doing that a thousand times again.

His suffering in prison for the sake of the gospel should also not compel us to give him, or anyone for that matter, a pass on being held accountable. If anything it should even hold us to a tighter standard.

It is true, we don’t know all the details of what’s going on in other peoples homes. To bring up questions of what has been raised in public is not unfair or out of order. To try to silence those seeking clarification is of itself an abusive response – either aggressively or passive-aggressively.

The church has been bewitched by secular philosophy that requesting clarification of Christian’s lives is not loving (true, it can be done in an unloving way), but this is no issue to sweep under the carpet and pretend like it’s not happening.

To clarify: I have attempted levels of clarity. I’ve not run into this matter without care or concern. I’ve attempted private communication with Saeed (still no response from him), I’ve attempted communication with a church that has been associated with him, I’ve appealed to him in an open letter. I’ve been rightly questioned if I’ve followed a biblical pattern in my attempts.

Back to the general issue of domestic abuse.

Think about it with me for a moment…

When rumor of abuse is being spread, many talk about it (not publicly, of course).
The church seems to have been trained by some misguided philosophy that silence is the right response when a spouse (usually the wife) reports abuse and it is a matter of public record. The church almost becomes paralyzed with fear of what to do.
To address the concern for both the abused and the abuser literally paralyzes many Christians as if they are playing a game of freeze tag. Don’t move. Don’t say anything. FREEZE! While the abused and the abuser are hanging on by a thread.
- The abused, until safe, needs help but doesn’t want to be seen as weak.
- The abuser, until repentance rules, will cover up his (her) actions with a fake humility.
Granted – this is dangerous territory; few of us have been in a place to be trained to properly help a friend in need.

There is so much more to think about on this matter. This is not intended to be an exhaustive discussion or even to offer a conclusion on this very serious issue. It is only a starting point.

The church needs to be honest with herself on the topic of domestic abuse. It happens. When Christians, especially pastors, are accused of abusive behavior they need to become very patient and transparent people to help remove all questions or be humble and seek help if the accusations are true. This is no time to ignore and move on.

Some starter questions that need discussed…

What are we going to do if this happens in our church?
How do we help the abused?
How do we address the abuser?
What does the church do when an abuser is a leader?
What does the church do if that abuser is a ministry leader but not in our church?
Is it fair to talk about it? If so, what is the aimed at conclusion of the talk?
Is it unfair to warn others?
Should a Christian leader with abusive ways (public record) be speaking to Christian universities and given a pass by Christian media?
What is fair to do when abuse happens in other churches to people we know?

It is clear, we (the church) don’t really have a good game plan in motion to navigate us through an emotionally charged season. And it is also clear, we really need a game plan.

What are your thoughts? Are you aware of a helpful resource that can help churches and Christians navigate these turbulent waters?

Finally, let every person in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ know that abusive people and their ways are not Christlike and are not tolerated. May every abused people have confidence they are safe and among a people who will not abandon them with the practice of secular philosophy.

Special note to wives: It is no violation of the duty of submitting to your husband to seek immediate help and find a safe place to lovingly help your husband and not enable his abusive behavior.

An Inspection of the Foundation

Posted on March 29, 20162 Comments

(The first title I had for this post was “Why I’m Not A Republican Even Though I Usually Vote Republican”, but this is more than a political post and it might scare some and even anger others to discover I’m not a -registered- Republican.)

I’m getting ready to make preparations to move my mom to Idaho in May. To do so requires the duty of making sure the home she buys is well built and all things are in order for her when she arrives. The last step in the process is the home inspection. If that is not in good order or at least repairable then it’s a disaster waiting to happen.

Well there are other foundations that need inspection today. In the great land of the free, America, many things appear to be changing quickly. An inspection of the foundation is in order to determine where attention is needed or disaster is waiting to happen, if it’s not too late.

“If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Psalm 11:3)

Here are four areas I decided to take a closer look at. I think they are all critical but one is of greatest interest for me.

Activist Judges
Sellout Politicians (mainly Republicans) Two Republican Govenors (Georgia and Utah)
A Castration of the Nation
A Church without a Voice

I’ll start with the easy and move to the more complex and painful but most needed.

Activist Judges: When a judge views the constitution of the United States as a living document they are not being true to their duty. A fair judge has a standard that they are bound to measure the actions against. It is not a duty of a judge to make a law or give way to break a law, they are to judge or make a judgment upon a fixed standard established by the law of the land. They do have a duty to give an interpretation or an opinion but that’s as far as their duty goes. To go further is a breach of duty.

When judges do not do their duty they make way for lawlessness.

O dear God, give us judges that are not afraid to judge against a fixed standard.

Sellout politicians: It is almost cliche. It almost makes being a politician a dishonorable office to hold. It is too bad that the word politician is nearly bankrupt of meaning. This is the primary reason I am not a Republican. The tragedy is obvious and I argue not all politicians are sellouts. I’m sure my deceased Democrat grandfather would argue his political party that sold out to a more progressive worldly platform has become less like they once were.

Nearly every time I write a letter to my governor I become increasingly disappointed with the replies. (Sure, his recent conceal gun law makes him popular but his weakness in regards to the defending an unborn child in the womb makes him more a sellout than a hero.)

Two other politicians (and I don’t mean any of the candidates running for president) are note worthy before I press on.

the Republican governor of Georgia (Governor Deal): His decision this week to veto a law that his state was pressing through legislation will likely be a landmark kind of decision. This was a law that would give protections to pastors to not be required to preform “same-sex” marriages. This is a veto from a Republican, but more striking is that he’s a member of First Baptist Church in Gainesville, Georgia. (A little investigation of FBC Gainesville will tip the reader off that his church is less Baptist and more humanistic, but that’s getting into my final examination.) Just to be clear; I am not the same kind of Baptist as Governor Deal or FBC Gainsville.
the Republican governor of Utah (Governor Herbert): With respect, I’m beside myself with this very pro-life governor. With respect to my friends in Utah, I have been impressed with your governor from afar. Also, with respect, I’m not sure I understand the law completely. But at second glance… I’m perplexed.
A law passed on March 28, 2016 requiring doctors to give anesthesia to women getting an abortion after the 20 week mark of pregnancy based on research that shows ‘fetus’ pain at this stage. At first, it has the appearance of compassion – then it strikes me as strange; is it compassionate to block the pain of a fetus while murdering it? No! this is a most strange law. Governor Herbert, why not pass a law that protects that unborn child?

Well, I could say more and go further on both of these, but studies show most people don’t read blog posts past the 500 word count point and I’m past the 750 word count right now and two more issues to go.

O dear God, help your people rise up an elect men and women who will not sell out.

The Castration of the Nation: There’s much to say here. First let me say I’m mostly meaning this figuratively, even though I don’t mean to not address the actual mutilation of the body in pursuit of gender confusion. I’ll say less here, but hear the less as only in content not mass.

A nation without gender separation has frankly taken a sledgehammer to the foundation and making fast work at destruction.

To acknowledge male and female as unique and distinctly beautiful is no weak position to take. It is rather to live in agreement that God wonderfully and fearfully made us male and female. A nation that legislates laws or appoints judges who ignore this of nature and nature’s God is foolish and weak.

O dear God, raise up a generation in this land of men and women who respects each other and honors you.

Finally, A Church without a Voice: There is nearly no place to begin or end on this examination. By the grace of God; in this day of activist judges ruling from emotion rather than standard, politicians selling out to money and agenda rather than the principle that gets them elected, and increasing confusion of strength we have in the gender specific creation ordained by God, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ has a most critical role and duty.

It’s not a ruling duty. It’s not an agenda. It’s not limited to men or women. Rather, it is a duty to speak truth; to be a fixed standard, a pillar and buttress of truth. O church, do you not know this? The weight of a nation built on truth must have a church that does her duty.

O dear God, give voice to your church. May she speak forth into this dark day. It is indeed a good day to be the church.

As the day gets darker the need is clear that a light must shine forth.

Not a light that is no light at all, but a lamp; well, like the kind a miner puts on in search of great treasures in the dark parts of the earth. A light that illuminates and reveals. A light that aids and even comforts. A light that warms. A light that attracts.

A light that cause men everywhere to tremble at the beauty of the kindness and severity of God.

What does this nation need? O she doesn’t know it, she doesn’t want to acknowledge it, but she needs a church that will do her duty. Church, if your pillar and buttress is not built on a proper, right, true foundation, you leave the nation at risk. Great risk!

What can the righteous do? Behold (look)! And then tell all of what you find.

There is a trustworthy standard to know what you are looking at, the Bible.
Don’t sell yourself out for a lesser treasure.
Respect and submit to Him who created them male and female.
Live in a worthily way in this dark day and speak of this treasure you find to all.

“For the LORD is righteous, He loves righteousness; the upright will behold His face.” (Psalm 11:7)

Recognizing True and False Teachers

Posted on March 21, 20162 Comments

Last night, March 20, at Eastside Baptist I gave some biblical guidelines related to the duty of the church to make proper judgment on recognizing true and false teachers/preachers.

The content of the message was difficult because it included naming Saeed Abedini as currently not displaying or producing fruit of a true teacher according to the instructions we have in Scripture to determine and discern.

Background Scriptures: Matthew 7:15-19, 1 Timothy 6:6, 2 Timothy 3, Galatians 5, 1 Thessolonians 5:21-22, 1 John 4, 2 Peter 3:18, 2 Peter 2:1-17, Proverbs 16:18, Matthew 18:15-20

Background information:

I’ve been asked by some in my church if we will attempt to invite Saeed to speak in our church now that he has been released. I need to give a clear answer as to why the answer is currently “no.”
I have made multiple attempts to communicate with Saeed Abedini in private to get clarification on his ordination and current church affiliation. (knowing these things would help in discerning the way he is publicly mishandling Scripture. He has not responded to any private communication. He is not required and I don’t demand it of him, I just simply want to be courteous.
I posted a letter to my church over a month ago cautioning them to exercise caution as interviews were beginning to show up in the media disclosing the fractured relationship between Saeed and Naghmeh. Before Saeed’s release it was reported that there was a history of abuse on Saeed’s behalf in the family, and public records confirm this.
It was reported that Saeed spent large moments of his time in prison on a smart phone watching movies, a misrepresentation of what was actually going on and what was being told to the church at large. (this is not to suggest that his suffering was not real and undeserved.)
In the limited public discourse I have had with Saeed online he gives misleading answers and clearly practicing poor hermeneutics in relationship to the Bible and the application of it. He’s lying if he doesn’t correct this and his behavior is unfitting for a pastor.

Christian, it’s time that you stop letting the fear of being called judgmental keep you from obeying God in relationship to people who present themselves as spiritual leaders. Here is a starting place to make careful consideration of what we hear and see. (I cover them in greater detail in the video/audio)

Recognizing true and false teachers
- The Bible Rules
- Context is King
- Use of Scripture
- Bearing Fruit
- Purpose
- Judge Them by Their Words and Actions
- Humility vs. Arrogance
- Authority
Public Discourse:
- Benefit of the Doubt
- Be Considerate
- Consideration
- Careful Statement
- Prepare Your Heart
- Aim for Clarification, Reconciliation, Give Room for Restoration
- When to Move On
- Prayer for Yourself and the Others
- Watch Yourself (pride is a monster)

As a pastor, it is good to be reminded that those who listen to me or read my thoughts are right to press me for clarification if I’ve done a poor job of communicating. And right to press even harder if there is clear doctrinal problem with my position or actions in life.

Ultimately: I give caution to the church I am responsible to and for to exercise care to your observing of what you hear and see of Saeed Abedini. By admission or omission he is not willing to submit to the authority of a local church. He is in an un-reconciled relationship with his wife while representing the Lord and His church to churches that advocated for him.

Exercise biblical judgment on the fruit of his words and actions.
Do not engage in lengthy debates online that lead to confusion and feed anger and pride.
False teachers need to be identified for the sake of the false teacher and those who defend them, but at some point we simply move on.
I would caution any church in the area to give intentional examination of Saeed’s current words and actions as reason not to give him opportunity to have spiritual influence on your congregation.
I call upon Christian universities and agencies to stop giving Saeed a platform to speak until he gives clarity of his ordination, church affiliation and status of his marriage.
I continue to pray for Saeed.
Refuse to let this end of our laboring in prayer keep us from praying for suffering saints around the world in their plight for the sake of the Gospel. Do it a thousand times again. Without hesitation!

God Can Restore

Posted on March 16, 2016Leave a comment

My preaching schedule of preaching through both halves of Kings took me through chapter four of second Kings last week. There’s nothing really amazing about that, finished chapter three the week before. (My preaching schedule is not that complicated.)

I do take breaks from the schedule from time to time. I’m known to shift out of the schedule with some calendared events such as Christmas or Resurrection Sunday. (I rarely follow the Hallmark Card industry calendar, such as Mothers’/Fathers’ Day, Valentines’ Day, etc… but never for Groundhog Day…) I’ve been know move out of the schedule when there are special events happening in the life of our church, but these are really quite rare. I’ve even been known to not break out of the schedule at Christmas or Resurrection Sunday.

That said, after I preach I’ll usually sit down at some point in the next couple of days and read the text I just finished preaching and look at my notes and many times listen to the audio; This practice has been helpful in many ways.

I usually see or hear something but missed in my preaching. Or hear something I did say that was not in my notes.
Sometimes I hear me say things that I wish I hadn’t said or things I wish I had written down.
If the text has an uncommon name I laugh at how many different ways I can butcher a name (out loud).
I want to make sure I don’t misrepresent God, ever, and if I need to make correction to something I said I want to do so as quickly as possible.
I hear my my incomplete sentences or stammering tendencies and wish I would just say it already.

But what I like best about looking back over a text I just previously preached is a fresh view of the text just preached.

This past week, for example. I saw the compassion of God in the text but I wish I had focused more upon it than I did. Chapter four of Second Kings had four sections.

A widow in need – After re-reading the text I called a widow in our church I have not done a good job of checking in on recently. I was touched by her confidence in God to help supply all of her needs. And He does. And she was kind to me.
A woman without children – After re-reading the text I was able to let the Holy Spirit minister to my soul for the desire of my children to want children. The Holy Spirit used to text to minister to me in a very close and personal way that would not have been appropriate in the pulpit.
A woman in grieving pain – After that same woman who was previously without child lost that child in death, her grieving process was unlike most. She was disciplined in her emotion. I spent time in prayer for the many in my church who have recently lost family. My prayer was for their emotional well being and that they would find stability for that emotion in a disciplined way.
A group of prophets mistakenly poisoned during a time of famine – This was an unexpected moment for sure. I thought upon this for a few more extra days. The beauty of God restoring the food to a healthy state was an encouragement for me as many will arrive at Eastside late this week for some bible training. Yes, the bible talks about famines of food and a famine for the word of God. Just as God restored the poisoned food for the prophets in a time of physical famine – He can restore a poisoned word for his church in a famine of the word.

God Can Restore!

Join me Thursday, Friday and Saturday at Eastside Baptist Church in Twin Falls.
Meal provided Thursday and Friday night at 5:15 pm, Teaching time begins at 6:00 pm each night. Saturday morning at 9:00 am

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