Over the next few days I want to share with you a beautifully written piece by David C. Fisher of the Oxboro Evangelical Free Church in Bloomington, Minnesota. A friend gave me this essay and it struck me that although it is written by a pastor and for pastors, the message is more than applicable to all of us in ministry. And really, we are all in ministry..whether we minister vocationally, teach Sunday school, take care of children in the nursery or work in a secular job—we have opportunities to minister each day.
The piece is long and because I, personally, tend not to read long blog posts, I am breaking this one up and sharing it over a few days. I hope it speaks as a reminder to you about looking beyond what the eye can see as you deal with people.
Pulpit Prayers by David C. Fisher
The organist played softly as the ushers collected the morning offering. Young and inexperienced, I usually used these moments to review my sermon notes one last time.
That Sunday, however, I looked at the faces of the congregation and soon forgot my sermon. As if scales fell from my eyes, I saw beyond the appearances to real life.
In the third pew on the right slumped the pregnant high school girl. On one side sat her mother; on the other her boyfriend and his mother. It was his mother’s first time in our church. They all looked as if their whole world had tumbled in. It had. On Tuesday I had agonized with the girl as she poured out her soul to me.
Just behind her sat a widow. Her son-in-law had recently abandoned her daughter, leaving three teenage granddaughters filled with bitterness. “What can I do?” she asked me. I didn’t have a lot of advice. We grieved together.
Nearby sat her sister-in-law, also widowed. Her pride in life, a son in the ministry, had just left his wife and church for a fling with another woman. A mother’s dream lay crushed. She bore her sorrow alone.
Beside her sat a granddaughter recovering from years of life in the fast lane. Bruised and confused, she wrestled with life and faith. I worried for her.
Halfway back huddled a young couple trying to put their marriage back together. An extramarital affair within the congregation nearly destroyed their family and threatened the church. It was so hard for them to live with the past and their memories. After all, just across the aisle sat the other party in the affair. We rejoiced in real repentance and reconciliation, but I ached with them. The pain cut so deep. Small towns and churches are not very forgiving.
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