The Road to Glory is Gorey

I am relatively new to this board but I thought I would share something that recently happened to me, in the hopes that some of you can relate to what I am going through. Please feel free to share some of your experiences or thoughts.

As of right now I am where God wants me in ministry. That is to say, I believe that God called me to my current position. However, the church has been in decline for the last hundred years or so. Just kidding, it has only been in decline for the last 50. This church is a historical church that was once in the relative obscurity of a remote rural existence only to find itself some hundred years later in the hotbed of growth and relative wealth. 88% of the area does not attend church. The only problem is that the church does not have it within themselves to make the necessary adjustments to be effective. Having put all the band-aids on the church that we can it is still not positioned culturally to reach the surrounding area for Christ. Translation, we are not winning souls to the Kingdom, bottom line. I am called to be a soul winner among other things. I do not believe that it is my sole duty. I cannot in good conscience remain at a church that is not evangelistic any longer and I truly believe that God has released me from this position.

I say all that to let you know the nature of my current ministry. So, I am going thought the process of seeking a new position. A church gets my resume, checks my background, credit, and is getting ready to extend an offer, when all of the sudden someone from their church claims to have known me back in the day prior to my surrender to ministry. Let me just say that I ran from my calling for 10 years. It was not a pretty sight. I am saved by grace and by grace I am in the ministry. God has blessed and I have had many great opportunities previously, I have earned a MDiv. and a ThM. Something I never thought possible for a guy who made straight Cs since the 4th grade. I graduated from both degrees with over a 3.75. God has done a work in me. Anyone who knows me knows that I have been turned around and now am fired up about Jesus. I preach the Word and try to the best of my ability to live the life. My slogan is Showing the Way... Sharing the Truth... and Living the Life. After hearing from this one individual, the church makes an about face and tells me that something came up and they are going in a different direction.

Evidently the church member had a "run in" with me, whatever that means and told the committee that if they hired me that he would not remain a member. I was shocked and asked the chairman, had this individual thought about the fact that I might have changed? I asked him if he thought about the fact that while the Lord was leading the committee to pursue me as a candidate, that he already knew my past? I asked him if he thought the Lord had made a mistake in calling me to ministry? Ultimately I asked him if he thought the member was being biblical and if the committee was being biblical? No answer, just sorry for the inconvenience.

Every indication was that this was a solid church until this happened. Correct me if I am wrong, was Paul not guilty of murder? And did not the church recognize the call of God on his life?

My wife and I were already looking forward to the ministry there until this just happened, but it now looks like God has other things in store for us...

I have to tell you this is the first time that I have been rejected by a church because of my past. Most every other group has seen the change as an awesome praise to God. Matthew 5 takes on a whole new light for me...

God bless and that is all for now.

Shalom,

Pastor Bill

[ February 15, 2005, 11:31 PM: Message edited by: Baptist_Pastor/Theologian ]

 

Thanks for the encouragement guys! I am going to fight the good fight and finish the race, don't you worry...