TRUST YOUR UNCERTAIN FUTURE TO A CERTAIN GOD

 TRUST YOUR UNCERTAIN FUTURE TO A CERTAIN GOD

We can be reasonably certain about many things. In fact, without this certainty about life, none of us could function. We can be certain that tonight the sun will ‘set’. Tomorrow the sun will ‘rise’. After the February 28th it will be February 29th. This year there will be international unrest and much political instability in many parts of the world. In the coming months global warming will be identified by politicians as the source of floods and wildfires. Several high profile international celebrities will die this year. Archaeologists will make a discovery that will require some aspects of history to be rewritten. And you will certainly have one of the most memorable moments in your life in the coming days. You see, there are clearly some things we can be quite certain about. However, there are some aspects about our future that we cannot be certain about, yet in those moments we can be certain about what we should do.

¶ Do not boast about tomorrow,
for you do not know what a day may bring.
Proverbs 27:1

Life is a gift. Used wisely this gift can bring great joy and blessing to you and to those you serve. We have so much untapped potential to experience extraordinary fun, laughter, happiness, and joy with this life-gift. Consider for a moment this wonderful gift we each have. We are created curious. We are created to explore. We are created to discover. We are created to invent. We are created to interact with interesting people. We are created to beautify – our possession, our surroundings, our appearances, our dinner-plates, our gardens, our homes, our cities, and our school book covers. We are created to help each other and find great joy in doing so. God has designed human life to be wonderful, winsome, and slightly weird – especially when we live it the way He has made for us. Life certainly is a great adventure. 

¶ As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.
First Timothy 6:17

But life also has moments that we didn’t see coming. In the Bible, Job did not see his sufferings coming. On Sunday December 7th 1941, the US Naval personnel stationed at Pearl Harbour had no idea what was about to happen – an event that changed the course of human history. On Tuesday September 11th 2001, 2996 people who turned up for work in New York City at the World Trades Centre Towers, but never saw the two planes coming that deliberately crashed into their place of work that would kill them in minutes. In 1990 I never imagined that my day would end with me in a coma in the Footscray Hospital after being hit by a Nissan Patrol while riding my motorcycle. It became a moment that would plague me for the rest of life leading to me being hospitalised on January 20th 2023 and given a very unwelcome diagnosis and prognosis. 

In her recent book, Being God’s Image, Dr. Carmen Imes recounts this moving account that reminds us that people’s futures are often uncertain.

One of our college friends suffered from debilitating migraines for over a decade. He spent his days, months, and years secluded in a dark bedroom. His wife worked full time to provide for their family. His children barely knew him. Doctors were unwilling to give him stronger drugs to knock out the pain because they didn’t want him to become addicted. So Chris suffered in silence.

One week he got a doozy of a headache that felt different from his typical migraine. After running some tests, doctors discovered an inoperable brain tumor, unrelated to his chronic migraines. They told Chris he was dying. Friends and family members were stunned. Chris, on the other hand, was elated. Finally, he could see the light at the end of his suffering! He would be healed, and he would see Jesus.

Ironically, since he was dying, doctors were no longer worried about habit-forming drugs, so they gave Chris strong painkillers. For the first time in years, he could leave his dark room and engage with his family. He attended his children’s games and programs. They even went to Disneyland.

In the six months before his death, Chris joined Facebook. After years of withdrawal due to light sensitivity, Chris could finally reconnect with old friends. Talking with Chris was surreal—he was ecstatic about dying. Grounded. He understood what mattered most. And with no mask to hide behind, Chris spoke life into each of us. Chris taught the rest of us how to live.

Imes, Carmen Joy. 2023. Being God’s Image: Why Creation Still Matters. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press. Page 101

Life can certainly host unwanted moments. But there is a certain way to deal with an uncertain future.

 

¶ Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
and He will make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6

What I am telling you now is not some untried theory. I am facing an uncertain future. I am applying the principles that God has given us to live a fruitful, effective, enjoyable life. To do this we stay in the community of our church family (we generally call this fellowship). Secondly, we worship God with praise and thanksgiving both in the midst of congregation (Ps. 22:22) and in private (Matt. 6:6). Thirdly, we prioritise the hearing and heeding of God’s Word (Ps. 119:169). If there are times when this is too difficult, then let me help. Have a look at this on YouTube which I have made for times just this. And fourthly, we must continue to pour our heart out to God in prayer. Sometimes there will be times when this becomes difficult for worn-out people as well. I suggest in those times opening up the Book of Psalms to Psalm 83 and pray that Psalm as your own. I can tell you from experience that these principles help us to deal with uncertain futures. I’d be interested to hear from you in comments if this has been helpful or what you do in moments of your uncertain future.

Your Pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.

THE SHEPHERD IS THE LORD

 [¶ A Psalm of David.] ¶ The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His Name’s sake.
¶ Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
¶ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Psalm 23:1-6

Of all the 150 Psalms, Psalm 23 is probably the most loved. As we read it we can easily imagine its author, the young shepherd-boy David, making the trek through a ravine where bandits, bears, and predators lurked as he led his small flock of sheep through to fresh water and green pastures. As he reflected on how he led and cared for his flock he must have pondered of how the LORD was like a shepherd to him. As easy as it is for us to imagine teenage David composing this beautiful Psalm, it is also easy to imagine how the God he describes as his shepherd in this Psalm is also a shepherd to us. God, as a shepherd, provides what we need (vs 1), restores our soul (vs 3), when we are unsure He leads on the right path (vs 3), He protects us from evil (vs 4), comforts us in times of distress (vs 4), strengthens us in our moments of weakness (vs 5), He gives us honour when our opponents attempt to bring us shame (vs 5), and He provides a place of belonging for us (vs 6). This is what a shepherd does, David tells us, and it is ultimately only found in the True Shepherd, the Lord Immanuel.

 

DAVID’S EXPERIENCE AS A SHEPHERD

But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father.
And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock,
I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth.
And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him.
Your servant has struck down both lions and bears,
and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them,
for he has defied the armies of the living God.”
First Samuel 17:34-36

David understood how important his role as a shepherd to his sheep was. He brought this understanding with him when he took on the Philistine giant and when he became king of Israel. He knew that a sheep – and especially a lamb – was doomed without the protective gaze of a shepherd. He also knew that people in his care were also doomed unless he acted like a shepherd to them (Acts 20:29).

He chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds;
from following the nursing ewes he brought him
to shepherd Jacob His people,
Israel His inheritance.
With upright heart he shepherded them
and guided them with his skilful hand.
Psalm 78:70-72

WHEN SHEEP ARE LEFT DEFENCELESS

Sheep without a shepherd are defenceless against predators – especially wolves (Jn. 10:12). This is something the Jesus stessed in John 10. Without the provision and leading of a shepherd they could also starve or die of thirst. When David became king of Israel, he understood his role as their king was just as critical as his role as a shepherd to his childhood flock of sheep and lambs.

THE SPIRITUAL PARALLELS OF SHEEP AND SHEPHERD

But we Your people, the sheep of Your pasture,
will give thanks to You forever;
from generation to generation we will recount Your praise.
Psalm 79:13

People are like sheep, the prophet tells us (Isa 53:6). who are easily led astray. Kim and I live next door to sheep, literally. In our morning walk Kim would often go up to the sheep and invite them to come over for a hello pat. It would usually only take one sheep to come over and then the others in the paddock would then join in. Similarly we would observe that if one sheep walked off in a direction the others were certain to follow. People are like sheep and the rise of social media, if there is such a thing, has arguably contributed to very ultra-sheepish behaviour which sociologists have referred to as social contagion. This social contagion has led to people, especially young people and particularly young girls, acting very irrationally en-masse. As Christians though we understand that this is not merely people acting like sheep, or the rise of social contagions, but an indication that we live in a world that is comprised of much more than just atoms.

We are all like sheep living in a spiritually dangerous world where there are predators who despise the Shepherd and would do anything to harm His sheep. In this world of wolves and predators the Shepherd offers protection within the fold. The fold is where the sheep are safe. The fold is where the sheep are fed. The fold is where the sheep are tended to by the Shepherd who binds up their wounds, removes the thorns and thistles that cling to fleece. We are all like sheep looking for a Shepherd and a fold where we can belong. The immaterial spiritual beings opposed to the Shepherd manipulate their minions to scoff at those who think that the Shepherd can protect them in such a pathetic fold as a “church”. What these manipulated minions do not know, but their dark evil overlords do know, is that the Shepherd’s fold, the Church, is not just a place comprised of a spiritual collection of sticks and bushes coupled together to form a makeshift flimsy fence! No. The church is a fully-armed, military unit equipped by the Shepherd with officers who regularly conduct rescue missions into enemy territory and bring lost sheep out of darkness into the light, shelter, and supplies of the Shepherd’s fold. It is a place, a relationship, where the gathered rescued sheep can say, The LORD is my Shepherd, I have all my wants taken care of by Him.

This is why we need realise that when David described himself as a sheep under that care of God as His Shepherd, he presenting a picture of a militant Shepherd! This is the kind of shepherd who used weapons against the foes of his sheep and would risk his own life in the face of such deadly threats. This is the kind of shepherd who would “kill lions and bears and wolves”! Shepherding is a military exercise! Consider the implications of this benediction in the Epistle to the Hebrews:

¶ Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus,
the Great Shepherd of the sheep,
by the blood of the eternal covenant,
equip you with everything good that you may do His will,
working in us that which is pleasing in His sight,
through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Hebrews 13:20

The spiritual reality of the Great Shepherd’s relationship with His sheep is that He equips sheep to become shepherds!  And He does this because He is not just the Shepherd — He does this because He is the LORD!

 

 

THE SHEPHERD WHO BECAME A LAMB TRANSFORMS HIS SHEEP INTO SHEPHERDS

¶ “‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a Ruler
who will shepherd My people Israel.’”
Matthew 2:6

The LORD transforms His people from being defenceless sheep into being warriors of the Lamb! He, the Great Shepherd, The Commander of the Hosts of Heaven, The Almighty LORD of Heaven and Earth, became Lamb. In the closing book of the Bible, the Great Shepherd is described as “a Lion” and, in the same passage, as “a Lamb”.

And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that He can open the scroll and its seven seals.”
¶ And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.  And He went and took the scroll from the right hand of Him who was seated on the throne.  And when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Revelation 5:5-8

Depending on your perspective, the apostle John reveals in his vision of heaven, Jesus was either a ferocious Lion or an apparently defenceless Lamb! As the revelation of who Jesus throughout the Book of Revelation becomes clearer we see that what initially appeared as a little Lamb was actually the military Rider of a white horse riding into battle against the Lord’s foes. The God who came as the babe of Bethlehem entered our world like a defenceless lamb. But in reality, He was the Great Shepherd, the Commander of the LORD’s Hosts, the One who could summon twelve legions of angels to do His bidding! What an amazing transformation! He, the LORD, became an arnion a defenceless little Lamb. And today, because the Lamb has conquered, He continues to transform His previously defenceless sheep into full equiped shepherds of His great flock. This is His mission for you child of God – to walk through the valley of the shadow of death with a rod and staff in your hand to bring healing and comfort to the lost and scattered defenceless sheep of this world. Our Shepherd is the LORD. 

Your Pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.

THE GREATEST PREACHERS

Apparently, some time ago, one of the world’s most respected theological publishers, Banner of Truth Trust, announced a list of the world’s greatest preachers of all time. These were the preachers whose preaching shaped their world, and ours, for generations to come. Not surprisingly, Jesus of Nazareth topped the list. (I’m rather pleased to inform you that F.W. Boreham was among the top 20 on that list.) It does cause one to ask though, What constitutes a preacher as ‘great’? As a preacher, I’d also be interested to know how one becomes a ‘great’ preacher.  

The point is, Before you trust, you have to listen. But unless Christ’s Word is preached, there’s nothing to listen to.
Romans 10:17 THE MESSAGE

WHAT MAKES GREAT PREACHERS GREAT PREACHERS

History is peppered with many great preachers. Men such as Ambrose (340 – 397) was an Italian preacher whose preaching changed the world. His preaching led Augustine (354 – 430) to Christ who went on to become one of the greatest preachers of his day. John Wycliffe (1330 – 1384) was an English preacher who shook the world. Martin Luther (1483 – 1546) was a German preacher whose preaching changed the Europe. Count Nicolaus Ludwig Von Zinzendorf’s (1700 – 1760) preaching changed the destiny of at least three continents. John Wesley (1703 – 1791) was an English preacher whose preaching is credited as saving England from the destruction that tore France apart. Billy Graham (1918 – 2018) preached to more people than any other preacher and witnessed more people coming to Christ than any other preacher. Each of these great preachers exhibited 5 essential qualities:

1. Great preachers are attractive – they attract people to listen to them.
2. Great preachers are easy to listen to – they are simple, eloquent and hold people’s attention.
3. Great preachers have something important to say – they need people to listen.
4. Great preachers move people to action – they create a movement for change.
5. Great preachers speak from their compassionate hearts as well as their sharpened minds – they will often memorise facts, Scriptures, and poetry to reinforce their message. 

for “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; 
¶ as even some of your own poets have said, 
“‘For we are indeed his offspring.’
Paul of Tarsus, Acts 17:28

WHAT THE GREATEST PREACHERS ALSO DO

Determining who should be considered among the greatest preachers is generally based on the level and scope of their influence and effectiveness. This is why the Apostle Paul is rightly considered to be the most influential preacher of all time (after Christ of course). His preaching clearly impressed people. The people of Lystra (Acts 14:12), for example, thought he was the god Hermes since he was such a good speaker. Was it his training that made him a great preacher? Was it his level of practice? Was it his dedication? Was it his great learning? There is something often overlooked about each of the truly great preachers that made them great, especially the Apostle Paul, : they prayed – but not how you might think. 

The universal trait of every great preacher is that they were unusually intense pray-ers. You would be forgiven for thinking that great preachers often prayed to be a great preacher. But the evidence suggests that this was never their prayer focus. Using Paul as our model, we can see from his epistles just how this great preacher prayed. Reading his epistles, one thing becomes very clear about how Paul saw the connection between prayer and preaching: he saw them as a partnership, a dual partnership. This dual partnership was firstly between prayer and preaching, and secondly, his support community and him. Note these two Scriptural examples.

At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—
Colossians 4:3

¶ Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you,
Second Thessalonians 3:1

LOOKING FOR PRAYERFUL PARTNERS

If you have ever heard a great preacher, you can be certain that there is a team of people praying constantly for them and the effectiveness of their message. When the Apostle Paul sought prayer from those he turned to, he didn’t seek it so much for himself, rather, he sought it for its effectiveness of the preached Word when it was preached to those without Christ (note the two examples above). Down through the ages whenever God raised up a preacher, He also raised up their support team who would pray for the effectiveness of their preaching. Perhaps the most recent and clearest example of this would be the one they called,The Prince of Preachers, Charles Haddon Spurgeon. He became a preacher at the age of 16. By the age of 19 he was pastoring a small Baptist church near the Thames in London. His friends and family back home in the countryside where he came from were praying constantly for the young preacher with the strange country twang to ears of Londoners. By the time he was 26, his church had grown far bigger than their building could hold. A public building was leased while the church constructed its new facilities in Elephant and Castle (inner London). Over 30,000 people gathered in that building to hear the young preacher and thousands of them made a commitment to Christ over the coming years. When Spurgeon opened ‘Metropolitan Tabernacle’, it could hold 6,000 people and they could hold up to five services a Sunday to fit the crowds in. This tabernacle was built with a furnace room downstairs and whenever Spurgeon preached there was always hundreds of people down there praying for the effectiveness of his message! 

Today, I’m praying that God will raise up both great preachers and great pray-ers. In next week’s post, I’ll discuss how these great preachers prayed for those who responded to their preaching. For now, I pray that God may stir you to be either one who preaches or one who prays for those who preach and what is preached to bear fruit for Christ. Let’s pray.  

Your Pastor,

Andrew Corbett

It Starts Young

Some of life’s greatest lessons catch you by surprise! Some of these surprises initially seem like a routine hit with a pillow which only is it later that you realise it had a non-routine brick among the feathers! One of these recent brick-in-the-pillow moments for me was listening to Horst Schulze. He is now one of the world’s most successful men and widely regarded as one of the greatest managers of people on the planet. As I listened to Horst tell his story, it dawned on me that he too had the same pathway to success and greatness that every other enduring super-high achiever possessed: he started young!

The Bible also contains the stories of some great leaders who were able to achieve the extraordinary.  Without exception, these great people also came up along the same pathway of success which required that they started very young. Joseph the Dreamer, Joshua the Commander, Jeremiah the Prophet, and Jesus the Saviour, all commenced their journey to extraordinary success when they were young. The young person who veers too long from the path of success by rebelling against God and those He has placed in authority over them is jeopardising not only their future but the positive benefit to the futures of many many others! The success that comes from helping many others brings a satisfaction that no party with booze, drugs, and sleaze could ever ever ever come close to! This is why I was so fascinated to hear Horst Schulze’s story.

For Horst it all began when his father took him to the city. It was young Horst’s first time in a city. His father showed him inside a hotel lobby. The young boy stood there amazed at the numbers and types of people in that lobby. He saw bell-boys assisting travellers with their suitcases. He saw desk-clerks pinging bells. He saw managers watching over their staff and directing traffic. And what he saw excited his young mind greatly. He now knew what he wanted to do with the rest of his life!

Horst could think of nothing else after he returned to his village. He was so persistent in his pleas to his parents to take him back to the city hotel that eventually his father not only relented but even decided to ask the hotel manager if he would give his pre-employment-age son a job in the hotel – without pay! The manager agreed and young Horst didn’t start a job that day, he started a career that has now led to him being the President of The Ritz-Carlton International Hotel Group. On that first day in that hotel Horst discovered that he loved helping people. Initially he found tremendous happiness from helping a weary traveller with their luggage. He then found new delights in helping people to the room. The more he discovered about the workings of a hotel, the more ways he realised he could help people. Today, he still enjoys the thrill of helping customers experience the world’s best service, but he also now enjoys helping people find a job in his hotels and helping them to do their job well and enjoy it, by learning to serve others. He says that this love of helping by serving particularly occurred when he was assigned to work in the hotel’s restaurant as a waiter. 

Normally, he tells, the Matradee (restaurant manager) is the ‘star’ in a restaurant and is treated like a rock-star by his staff. But in this hotel’s restaurant, the real rock-star was the Head Chef. All the waiters and even the Matradee were in awe of him. He commanded respect. But unlike most Head Chefs, this chef had time for people. When Horst started working as a waiter in this restaurant, the Head Chef came up to him and spoke with him. 

“Who’s the most important person in this restaurant Horst?” he asked the awe-struck boy.

“You?” timidly replied Horst.

“No.“

“The customer?“

“No.“

“You are!” said the Head Chef to Horst, “You are a gentleman serving other ladies and gentlemen tonight Horst! Everything we do tonight can be made better or worse by you!“

This made a great impact on Horst. How he served customers (“ladies and gentlemen”) in that restaurant was the most important thing that was happening that night! As the restaurant opened and began to fill with diners, the Head Chef made an appearance from the kitchen onto the dining room floor amidst rapturous applause from the dinner-suited diners. The Head Chef acknowledged their applause and then gave Horst a wink, as if to say, don’t let their applause for me trick you into thinking that you’re not still the most important person here tonight.

Today, there are 90 Ritz-Carlton Hotels in 29 countries around the world and Horst Schulze is the part-owner, President, and Chief Operating Officer of the world’s most prestigious Hotel chain. They are now regarded as one of the world’s leading customer service orientated businesses which they won many international awards for. Wikipedia notes–

The company grew under the leadership of President and COO Horst Schulze. Schulze instituted a company-wide concentration on both the personal and the data-driven sides of service: He coined the company’s well-known customer/employee-centered motto, “We are Ladies and Gentlemen Serving Ladies and Gentlemen” and the set of specific service values (standards) on which The Ritz-Carlton employees base service through the present day.[17] Under his leadership the hotels earned an unprecedented two Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Awards[18] and grew from four to forty U.S. locations.[19]

Horst attributes his passion to serve others and to do it with excellence to his faith in Christ. After all, Jesus Christ is the Servant of all. Christ is the Ultimate Helper. To love Jesus is to serve Jesus and join with Him in serving those He wants helped. Not many followers of Christ really come to understand this. But history tells us two standout things about those who do: they all started their journey with Christ at a very young age and they all refused to be ordinary just like the crowd around them. 

If you have come to Christ after your teen years, it’s not too late for you – but it is far more difficult for you to overcome years of worldly attitudes, decades of bad habits, and the ease of just going along with the crowd. But by the grace of God, it can be done. However, if you are a young person who has come to know Christ – rather than a young person who goes to church because they are made or expected to by their parents – you probably already feel different. There will be moments of doubt to overcome. There will be times of loneliness to bridle. There will be temptations to resist. But history tells screams to you that it will be well worth it – hang in there! 

When I move into the next phase of my life and begin to look to someone to take the baton from my hand, I am pretty sure it will be to someone whom God has called and equipped from a very young age. This young person may be very be alive today (they may even already be in our church). They will probably have an unusual curiosity about God and the Bible. When in church their heart probably draws them to close their eyes during the times of congregational worship and capture a vision of God in Heaven surrounded by trillions of mighty angels singing their adoration of Him. As the preacher preaches, they will find the questions they had previously asked God that week being answered – as if God was speaking directly through the preacher to them. When they receive instruction in our Kids Church they will probably gladly be memorising the assigned memory-verses of the Bible. They will probably grow up with a very keen sense of right and wrong – which could cause their sometimes-compromising parents some irritation.

In the meantime, you might be the lady or the gentleman who encourages them with an appropriate word or wink, just like the Head Chef did for Horst when he too was a very young man, because when it comes to greatness and success – it starts young.     

But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves.
Luke 22:26

Amen.

Andrew Corbett