Day 340, or December 6th. Your leaders need your
support. Our thoughts today come from 1 Thessalonians
5, verse 13. Hold your leaders in the highest
regard in love because of their work. Live in
peace with each other. And now the big picture surrounding
this verse. Paul emphasizes the need to keep
focused throughout this letter, and is assisted
by Timothy, to whom he later writes a couple
of letters that are in our Bibles. He concludes
his letter with instructions to help you stay
on target, eleven verses towards the end of the
last chapter that will revolutionize our lives
if we get to grips with what they contain. And
now our action step for today. There seems to
me to be a marked lack of respect in our society
today oh I know my parents said the same as did
my grandparents and it goes all the way back
to the Bible, today's verse however is specifically
about respect for pastors and teachers It's worth
linking this with James chapter 3 verse 1, which
reminds us, we who teach will be judged by God
with greater strictness. Having served as a pastor,
I can tell you that some church members seem
to go out of their way to discourage in love.
I clearly remember a lady coming round to see
me one Monday morning after I had preached the
previous day. I was the associate minister, and
as such was not a regular preacher for which
I was grateful, as I have always felt much more
at ease teaching in a seminar format or house
group. She pompously told me that her husband
and her felt preaching was not my gifting, and
I shouldn't do it any more. If she had brought
a bucket of cold water with her, she couldn't
have dampened my spirits more effectively. I
found it particularly unhelpful, not because
there was a lack of respect, but because there
was a basic lack of love and empathy. Respect
your leaders and remember they have feelings
too. They get discouraged too. They need a kind
word too. Support them in every way and you will
get the best out of them. That way, we all win.