Don't Let People
Get You Down
(including church people)
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Let Jesus Lift You Up
this article was written around 1998--
and yes, church people are still acting up.
It seems that there is always somebody trying to knock you down from your walk with Jesus. One of two things will happen: 1) you'll cling to the Lord and ignore what they are trying to do, or, 2) you'll fall by the wayside.
I received an e-mail from a gentleman who was knocked down by church people. After he came to Christ, he was reading his Bible for 45 minutes a day in the evening. When the church people found out, they told him that he had to seek the Lord early and that he should only read in the morning. When the man tried to rearrange his schedule for them, he stopped reading the Bible and began backslidding.
Should they have compelled that man to read his Bible in the morning? No. In Romans 14, Paul tells us to let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind concerning his worship. I told the man that there's nothing wrong with reading your Bible at night. Don't let people mess up your worship/study/praise time.
I will now open up my personal hurt in hopes that my healing by Jesus will comfort someone else.
My husband and I served faithfully at a Bible church for six years ministering in many different areas. There were leadership problems at the church, but we stayed. In January of 1997, we got a new Pastor who spent a lot of time with my husband and I because we were probably some of the most visible people in the church. He ate dinner in our home, came early Saturday mornings for coffee and computer lessons, I became his secretary, Tony helped him around the church, he came to our teen fellowship nights and ate--we spent more time with him than the rest of the membership put together.
Tony and I discovered that this man was a liar who was seeking his own glorification. Tony talked to him about some issues and he got mad. Some of our young people began to ask us what was wrong with him, yet we said nothing against the preacher. We quietly began to look for other churches on Sundays (after fulfilling Sunday School and bulletin ministries) while we continued our midweek ministries at the church. When the pastor was in our presence, he was clearly uncomfortable. One night, the pastor 1) came in to our youth meeting (with kids sitting there), 2) told us to give him our church keys and 3) to get out. When my husband protested, the preacher called a police officer in to make us get out.
We took the kids home crying. The kicker is that no member of that church asked why he kicked us out. During our six years there we: tithed, gave money to individuals, mowed grass, ran youth ministries, performed special music, performed administrative duties, gave an ear to problems, prayed, taught Bible lessons, and many other things. I cried to the Lord day and night. I told Him that I needed Him to take the bitterness from me. All this happened the week prior to Easter. I felt that it was very fitting for I was betrayed and empathized with the Lord Jesus.
All the hurt is not yet gone, but much of it is. This is how I'm getting over it.
- Crying to the Lord until I get some satisfaction.
- Telling Jesus He has to take away the hurt 'cause I can't do it.
- Reading the Psalms. Psalms 3 especially spoke to me. A precious verse that has helped me tremendously is Psalm 4:4, "Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah." Uplift the Lord in your heart. Consider His word and talk to Jesus continually.
- Keep in mind that eternity is what counts, not the actions of people.
- My good works will follow me into glory and are never done in vain.
- Jesus said that if I abide in Him, I will bear fruit and that my fruit shall remain.
- God is still good, ALL THE TIME.
- The wicked do not prosper.
- God judges righteously.
- There are people depending on me to do the right thing.
- The race is not given to the swift or the strong. It is to them that endure. So I endure all things, believe all things and cling to my Lord in all things.
- People need to be saved. I can't stop my ministries to feel sorry for myself which does no good.
- "Vengence is mine," saith the Lord.
Don't let people get you down, let Jesus lift you up. Praise ye the Lord whose name is blessed forever.
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