Josh Hatcher's Blog

Advice for Elders and Young Men

5 And now, a word to you who are elders in the churches. I, too, am an
elder and a witness to the sufferings of Christ. And I, too, will share
his glory and his honor when he returns. As a fellow elder, this is my
appeal to you: 2 Care for the flock of God entrusted to you. Watch over
it willingly, not grudgingly-not for what you will get out of it, but
because you are eager to serve God. 3 Don't lord it over the people
assigned to your care, but lead them by your good example. 4 And when
the head Shepherd comes, your reward will be a never-ending share in his
glory and honor.
5 You younger men, accept the authority of the elders. And all of you,
serve each other in humility, for

"God sets himself against the proud,
but he shows favor to the humble."

6 So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and in his good
time he will honor you. 7 Give all your worries and cares to God, for he
cares about what happens to you.
8 Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the Devil, your great enemy. He
prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. 9
Take a firm stand against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember
that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going
through the same kind of suffering you are.
10 In his kindness God called you to his eternal glory by means of Jesus
Christ. After you have suffered a little while, he will restore,
support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.
11 All power is his forever and ever. Amen.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House
Publishers, Inc.) 1996.

I know I'm far from perfect. And, while I'm not content to stay where I
am in life... I've pretty much accepted the fact that I am not
perfect...

But when God reveals one of those imperfections to me, i try to take
that as an opportunity to change.

Sometimes I look at my station in life... the way limited cash flows in
and flows out almost instantaneously... I look at other people getting
blessed and I turn green... and you know... I've been there before.

I remember years that I spent in the desert places before I came to
Bradford.. those places where hearing from God was scarce... I believe I
went through that because of my disobedience and my pride..... my
choices to suit myself, and my dissatisfaction for the blessings that
God had poured out on me...

I would cry out to God, and I could tell He was there.. but He was not
talking....

He wanted to, but my pride had to be cleansed. Like the whole angel with
the coal in Isaiah 6.. purging the sin....

And here I am.. smack dab in the center of God's will, getting my pants
blessed off of me.... and all I can do is focue on how little I make...
or how few EXTRA things we have....

Ouch....

And how Right I am about everything... ouch..

God I confess my pride and my selfishness to you.

Clean me up.... I want to be more like you.
Why?