Quote from Forum Archives on March 21, 1999, 7:36 pm

Posted by: lifeunlimited <lifeunlimited@...>

Standing Shoulder To Shoulder With You In The Trenches
As We fight The Good Fight

SHOULDER TO SHOULDER #62 ---- 3/22/99

TITLE: "Have You A Word From God? (#6) ---- Restoring The Wounded

My Dear Fox Hole Partner:

It is Sunday night, nearly 10:00 p.m., and I'm just now beginning to
write this week's letter to you. This past week as been incredibly busy
and unbelievably rewarding.

Our grandson, Christopher, has been spending a week with us while " Mommy
and Daddy" go through missionary orientation, we went to my parents' to
celebrate their 63rd anniversary and my birthday on Friday, we spent a
full day of training and fellowshipping with about 80 people (many of
them Christians) in a seminar for Jo Ann's business, returning home late
Saturday night, I fought a severe sinus-caused tooth ache all that night
and after three hours of sleep left at 7:00 a.m. to preach in a church
torn apart as a result of their pastor's resignation, and then spent
Sunday evening with our daughter and her husband along with about 30
other missionaries in orientation, followed by an hour of sleepy driving.

So ---- I'm glad to be home ---- and with you. Amazingly, God has
intervened, and I sense a freshness that I believe will enable me to
adequately write my letter to you.

COMMENTS FROM OTHERS:

This past week I received three very special letters from two men who are
very close to my heart. Both are pastors. One is a long-time friend of
over 24 years, the other is a relative. One has pastored for many years,
one is just beginning.

Each of them said some things which blessed me immensely. So, regardless
of what else I do today, I want to pass some of their thoughts on to
bless you as well. And, I think they will.

Writer #1:

"Bob, I'm not sure why I haven't written to this point.

"I've been a pastor for just almost 2 years now. In the past 3 to 4
months, I have FINALLY felt somewhat competent in what I do...I'm
beginning to grasp -- and FOLLOW -- the disciplines, relationships,
leadership principles, etc. necessary for me to do this.

"And I've also discovered a lot of things about myself and the position
that I NEVER even thought about until now.

"I don't know of many pastors that don't have a secret or completely
open desire to be famous, ---- to be another Jack Hayford, Charles
Swindoll, Max Lucado, etc. or even just be famous in your own neck of the
woods . . .

"IF I ever get there, IF I ever get enough of those disciplines and
abilities down to where God allows me that kind of audience, that kind of
platform, I plan to start trying to publish your shoulder to shoulder
letters. I've already sent them to all the "e-mail friendly" pastors I
know. The insights and empathetic understandings are quite valuable and
helpful.

"Your honesty and candor have been quite -- well, shocking -- to me.
Part of my shock is probably from the fact that . . . you've really laid
yourself bare in some of these letters.

"And I appreciate it.

"So do how many ever number of people get your letter these days. As
near as I can tell, you're saying the things that most of us won't.
You're confronting us with the things most of us CLAIM ignorance about.
And, best of all, you're opening your life up to men (and women?) who
likely don't do that much. (According to John Maxwell, 70% of all
pastors do not have ANYONE they consider to be a close friend.

"Again, thank you.

"[My son and I] are just about the same age. I am an 21-month old pastor
-- still learning to talk, to relate to people, how to express affection,
still learning to walk -- and tripping over my own silly, unfamiliar feet
plenty of times -- still quite selfish and somewhat demanding, still
extremely immature...you get the idea.

"But at the same time, I recognize now just how much this is an
'intangible business.' We deal with souls, with the development and
maturity of people; we deal with sheep. We can't look at "bottom lines"
and sales figures. Oh, sure, we can look at attendance and budgets and
baptisms . . . -- but my not-so-secret fear right now is that it is
entirely possible, maybe even EASY, to gather a crowd, but not have a
church.

"Attendance is no sign of maturing. Everything I do is SO intangible.
At the end of my days [of] selling . . ., I had a sales figure with a
decimal point and -- hopefully -- commas! At the end of my days here, I
often have question marks and ellipses we use in writing to indicate
omissions or unfinished thoughts.

"I understand now at least one of the reasons why pastors are so
insecure. Jo Ann has always joked it's a required class in seminary! For
me, it's all that above combined with the FACT that we deal in souls.

"If a lost person shows up in our church and I haven't prepared well that
week for the message and my bumbling turns that person 'off', WHAT HAVE
I DONE? If someone needs ministry and I am clueless what to do and wind
up doing nothing, WHAT HAVE I DONE?

"I know that it's all ultimately a 'God thing,' but one of the things
I've struggled with so far in ministry is where to draw that line.

"In other words, the shepherds in Ezekiel were being judged by God for
doing an inadequate and corrupted job of shepherding.

"So, when did they cross that line? When did it cease to become a God
thing and become something for which they were judged? When does it
cross over into my area of responsibility? To what am I held
accountable?

"Well, anyway, your letters have been an invaluable source of
encouragement to me. Thanks.

Jim

Writer #2:

"Bob,

"I don't often write to you, but I do read your Shoulder to Shoulder
articles with interest. Isn't it amazing how the Lord uses our
heartaches of 20 years ago to minister to others today? I appreciate
your ministry to pastors.

"To abbreviate my remarks, the seeming desert of ministry here at [church
name] has
developed in me a desire to minister to pastors of plateaued and
declining churches.

"I have learned so much in the process of trying to get this one off the
plateau (or should I say the nadir). I have reached out to others to
encourage them and keep them going, and have considered the work of a
[denominational position] a few years back. Now, it has come up
again...[a man's name] wants my resume for the
position. He feels I'll do a good job there; and it is something I can
envision for myself....

"So, I am in need of a RHEMA word...not just to go there, but to release
me from this place. I have felt I was to stay around until we
experienced genuine revival here, and then I would be free to go.
Perhaps my work is finished here, even if I can't see the
results. That's what's so hard about ministry at times, in that the work
isn't so visible.

"When I began bus driving to supplement my income, it was very rewarding
to me, not only to get a pay check, but to see the results of my work on
a daily basis, and to get regular affirmation from my dispatcher.

"So, the longer I remain in a ministry with little visible results, the
more I need to hear a clear word from God to keep on track.

"Keep on doing what you're doing. Remember, only one of the ten healed
lepers remembered to express gratitude. Perhaps it's even less than that
with these e-mail
ministries.

Gratefully,
Steve

THANK YOU, FATHER:

When I get letters like these, they remind me all over again of the honor
God has given me to offer encouragement to the men and women in the
trenches. Both of these men raise some pertinent questions regarding the
ministry and the ways in which we are tempted to assess our degree of
success.

A BEATEN CONGREGATION:

One of these brothers ministers in the northwestern part of the United
States. A number of years ago God opened the door for our ministry out
there, and Jo Ann and I spent several years of making ministry trips out
there about every eight to nine months.

During some of those trips I happened to run into a young pastor whose
personality and genuineness captured my heart. It was as if we had known
each other for years. A couple years later he invited Jo Ann and me to
conduct a series of meetings in his church.

Over the next two years we ministered together several times, both in his
church and in others. Eventually he and his wife became part of our Life
Unlimited Ministries' team, and they continue to this day, giving
direction to LUM Northwest.

During one of these meetings in Seattle, WA, as we ministered together,
we found ourselves with a battered pastor and a devastated church on our
hands. They had gone through some severe times of trouble and testing.
It has been long enough ago that I don't even remember the specifics
except to know that this little struggling church lost a number of irate
and angry members over the situation.

As Kenny, Kathleen, Jo Ann and I ministered the grace of God to them that
week, our wonderful Savior began to take center stage and initiate some
deep healing and restoring. When something like that happens directly at
the hand of God, it is a sight to behold. No human effort can compare to
it in beauty, depth, totality, or thoroughness.

It was at this point I was to learn another new truth concerning "Rhema"
---- that special moment when God gives you a clear and decisive word not
to your mind, but to your spirit.

You see, up to this point, most of these experiences had pertained to
needs and circumstances within my own ministry or my own family. This
occasion, however, was to reach out to a group of people outside of our
intimate circle.

We had begun the series of meetings on Sunday morning, and had seen a
glorious beginning in that first service. That evening, as I stood to
preach, I felt overwhelmed with the urge to share a passage of scripture
with the people prior to my message, simply to encourage them.

I stood to speak ---- but my lips fell silent. There was nothing there.
I knew I had nothing to say that would help bind up the broken hearted.

I just stood there in silence, looking at them. I sensed such a quiet
peace that I wanted to soothe them with. Yet, I could not speak.

We just ---- looked at each other.

On occasion my eyes would make contact with another pair. In that
instant I could hear them silently crying out ---- "help me! Tell me
something that will give me hope!"

It was an extraordinary experience. Never in all my ministry do I
remember a moment when an entire congregation seemed to be reaching out
to me, grasping for hope ---- for a word ---- for a life line.

As I quickly searched the inner recesses of my mind, asking the Lord what
I needed to share with them, my mind was captured by the thought ----
"Hosea!" Remembering something my Father had taught me years ago about
first impressions being things you should quickly follow, I turned to the
book of Hosea.

It isn't a big book ---- just 14 short chapters ---- nine pages in my
Bible.

Leafing from the beginning, page by page, I was suddenly captured by a
single word ---- "Come!"

That was the word! That's what they needed to hear! "Come!"

Finally, I spoke.

"I'm not accustomed to experiences such as this, and as far as I can
tell, I have never told any group of people that I felt I really had a
clear message from God just for them that He wanted me to tell them."
(Of course we all feel our sermons are often specifically from God to a
people, but this is different.)

"Tonight, however, I believe God has shown me just now something He wants
you to know, and I am compelled to tell you what He has said ---- just
for you."

With that, I began reading ---- Hosea 6:1-3.

"'Come,' let us return to the Lord.

"For He has torn us, . . .

"but He will heal us;

"He has wounded us, . . .

"but He will bandage us.

"He will revive us after two days; He will raise us up on the third day
tact we may live before Him.

"So ---- let us know, let us press on to know the Lord.

"His going forth is as certain as the dawn; and He will come to us like
the rain, like the Spring rain watering the earth."

Oh, how precious and special that moment was!

As I slowly and emphatically read each sentence ---- each phrase ----, my
eyes began to fill with tears. I knew I was hearing the voice of God
compassionately speaking to a people He loved so very deeply.

My voice broke ---- and finally settled into a faltering whisper as I
struggled to articulate the broken heart of a Father for His battered
children ---- "He will heal us" . . . "He will bandage us" . . . "He will
raise us up" . . . "So ---- let us press on."

By now most of the congregation was weeping. The pastor was sitting on
the front row with his face buried in his hands. His wife was convulsing
in uncontrollable sobs.

I knew God had come ---- and He was doing what only He can do ----
binding up broken hearted, pouring oil on the bruised.

When I finished reading, I waited in silence.

Then I read the verses again ---- more strongly ---- more confidently.

Upon concluding the second time, I simply said, "Friends ---- this is
God's special word just for you ---- just for you. Receive it as His
gift of assurance. Embrace it as life to yourselves. He means it from
the bottom of His heart, and He is going to fulfill it."

Though this experience happened nearly 20 years ago, it is as vivid in my
mind as if it were yesterday.

The wonderful thing, however, is that God did for those people just what
He said.

I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I had not "heard" in my
inner man what God was saying to His children, and then obediently passed
it on to them.

A "RHEMA" THAT STANDS THE TEST OF TIME:

While there have been numerous other times when I shared that same
passage of scripture with pastors or churches since then, none has been
with such absolute conviction and certainty as that ---- until yesterday.

Yesterday morning I preached to a pastorless church still reeling from
some type of upheaval (what is involved I have no idea) which resulted in
it's pastor's resignation. I had been asked to consider a "long-term"
interim pastorate to help them find healing, redirection, and adequate
preparation for a new pastor, using a process we had developed called
"Interim With A Purpose" (IWAP).

That afternoon I met with the Church Council to discuss such
possibilities.

For some unexplainable reason, I found myself making reference to that
passage, and telling them I felt God wanted to speak to them from that
passage.

Since I had inadvertently left my Bible in the car, I simply asked them
to write the passage down and read it at a later time. As far as I could
tell, every person present jotted down the reference.

It will be interesting to see what happens this week.

But ---- it doesn't end there. Last night as we sat in the chapel of the
national offices of a major denomination with our eldest daughter for
evening services during their missionary orientation process, I found
myself opening my Bible again to that passage ---- and just reading it
over and over. I thought perhaps the Lord might prompt me to share it
with the group, but it didn't seem appropriate.

So ---- what was yesterday's purpose? Was it to encourage that Church
Council just 25 miles south of where I live? Was it to quietly and
silently affirm to unsuspecting missionary candidates? Was it simply to
remind me of God's promises He had made to me in years gone by from that
same passage?

My good friend, Jim Hylton, has often said that God is an extra good pool
player, because while He takes aim to drop a particular ball in a corner
pocket, He often does a bank shot and takes out several other balls into
the side pockets.

Maybe He's targeting you with a bank shot, my friend.

SIDE POCKET DEAD CENTER:

Friend, is it possible that you or someone you know has been torn and
needs to be healed? Or maybe has been wounded and needs to be bandaged?
It's not inconceivable that God may want to offer this wonderful promise
of restoration to a number of readers today.

Oh, my fellow soldier! God wants His warriors healed and healthy!

"Come!"

"Come! let us return to the Lord!"

"He will heal us!"

"He will bandage us!"

"He will revive us!"

"He will raise us up!"

"His going forth is as certain ---- absolutely as certain as the dawn."

"He will come to us like the rain, like the Spring rain watering the
earth!"

"So let us know, let us press on to know the Lord!"

My friend ---- while God may find it necessary to bring us to the end of
ourselves in sometimes very painful and humiliating ways, it is never
---- Never ---- His intent to destroy us or harm us.

For the believer, His unwavering intent is always ---- always ---- to
restore us and bring us back to health and to Himself.

So ---- "Come on! Let us return to the Lord!"

In Christ's Bond of Mercy and Grace,

Bob Tolliver ---- (Rom 1:11-12)
Copyright March, 1999. All rights reserved.

If this letter has blessed you and you know of someone else who needs to
be encouraged, feel free to forward it in its entirety to all such people
you know.

If you would like a list of past issues which you could receive upon
request, just let us know.

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{ (O) (O) }
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Hang in there! I'm with you!

-------.ooooO--------------- Ooooo--------
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