Moving Forward by Faith

(Forgot to post this yesterday. Sorry.)

Scripture Verse that caught my attention today: Ezekiel 24:18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died. And on the next morning I did as I was commanded.

Observation: Sometimes the prophets suffered painful realities themselves.

Application: I know of at least two bishops who have gone through extremely difficult times with members of their respective family. One had a son who took his own life. Another had a son who was so challenging at home that his parents had no choice but to entrust him to the courts.

Those must have been extremely challenging times for these bishops. Many other bishops and pastors have worked their way through similar experiences. The same of course is true for a great many laypersons who have their own stories to share.

I’m not necessarily equating prophets and bishops and pastors together, but the fact remains that Christian leadership brings its own challenges, sometimes especially close to home. While I certainly hope and pray that I won’t have to go through the same kind of experiences as some of my esteemed colleagues, if I do go through those types of experiences, I pray that I will, like them, receive just enough grace to help me through such a profound time of need.

Prayer: Lord, you say that your grace is sufficient. That’s what we’re all counting on. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Readings included: Ezekiel 22-24 and Revelation 9)