Embracing the Day of Small Things

 In Blog, Charles Cavanaugh

“For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice…”
(Zechariah 4:10 ESV)

 

As followers of Christ and the Church of Jesus Christ, we are far more influenced by our culture than we realize or care to admit. This is nowhere more apparent than it is in the life of the church and its ministry. Success is often measured in terms of size and numbers and immediate results rather than how decisions will impact the next generations. Budgets and baptisms are a measure of the the work of the church, but they are not the only or final measure.

 

The church and its leaders often fail to embrace the aspects of ministry that will touch and change the next generation for Christ. Biblical discipleship and investing in fathers and fathers to be requires time and patience. It requires a willingness and even a conscious decision to look beyond the immediate and stay committed to and focused on the priorities that will make a lasting impact on this and the next generation.

 

Pastors must make the time to spend with men and invest what God has done and is doing in their lives in those men. We must learn to ask appropriate questions, offer wise counsel, and pray fervently with and for men as they face the difficult and practical issues of personal growth and family leadership. There are no easy answers and seldom immediate results, and we must walk with young men, husbands, young fathers, older fathers, and grandfathers. We must experience with them their successes, their failures, their frustrations and joys. We must build trust and constantly communicate our passion for Christ, His Gospel, and Gospel-centered living. Passion for Christ is the key element. A vision for men and their descendants must be our pursuit in ministry. We must embrace what the LORD told the prophet Habakuk; “For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry” (Habakuk 2:4). Most of ministry requires a long-term perspective, and this is certainly true of touching the next generation. Embrace the day of small things, and invest in the vision of the generations to come: for the future of the Gospel and the glory of our great God.

 

Charles Cavanaugh

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