This morning in church my daughter Robyn addressed the congregation. She did so with eloquence and elegance; qualities that I have become so accustomed to from her that I neglected to tell her what a great job she did. Many in the congregation wiped tears from their eyes as she shared how God had delivered her husband Wayne, her two children, Gracie and Noah, and herself from sure death in a fiery accident two years ago. She went on to exhort us all to remember that it is in the "weak moments" of our lives when God demonstrates His great power. How that skinny little girl got so wise, so quickly escapes me. Oh yeah, and the fact that she is now 33 years old also gets by me from time to time. So darling, not only did you do a great job this morning - you reminded me that there is a generation that has its hand on the baton, ready - and able -to take it and run the race with patience.
As I was thinking about these things for a few minutes this evening I realized again how incredibly blessed Barbara and I have been over the years and are now blessed. We have 6 children (our little Matthew preceded us to the throne almost 23 years ago), 6 grandchildren, 3 children who married into the family and whom we love as if they had been born in our house, and 2 living mothers and as I stood in the pulpit this morning I could see them all. My firstborn son is my associate pastor, my daughter and her husband are our youth leaders, another son is a drummer on the worship team and still another plays the bass guitar. A grandson who at 12 is a gifted musician and plays with his dad on the worship team, an 8 year old granddaughter who is one of our video camera operators and video editors, a daughter-in-law who ministers to the deaf, and my baby girl, brilliant and beautiful who will graduate from high school at 16 1/2; mature and responsible. Each one in their own way has put their hand to the plow and we who were once just two just a few short years ago are now many.
The Psalmist writes: (Psalm 78) I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old: Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done. For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children: That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments:
There are so many in the ministry today so focused on building their ministry that we forget that the only way to build a ministry is to build men and women and the most important lives we must build live in our own homes. The promise made to Abraham could only come through his "seed"; and God called Aaron and "his sons." God promised to establish the throne of David forever and that promise could only be fulfilled in the lives of the generations that would come after him. The great promise of Pentecost was to "you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off......" (your children's children.)
We must remember that God is a God of many generations. We must lead our children and in so doing we build ministries that will live long after we have died. If we will build great ministries we must teach other men to lead their own families (not lead them for them) and in so doing we will build ministries that shall exist for generations - each one greater than the last.
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