What To Do When You Feel Overwhelmed

Sometimes things simply take us by surprise. On the surface the circumstances seem insurmountable.  We know that the enemy is powerful, well equipped, and wily.  We don’t have a clue how to respond. 

That is when we must simply turn our eyes upon the Lord.  He is our protector and a very present help in times of trouble.

 In 2 Chronicles 20 Judah’s King Jehoshaphat was faced with such a situation.  Things had been going fairly well for Judah, and Jehoshaphat was a good King.  However, he received very disturbing news.  A federation of nations had formed against him and they were on the march to invade Judah.  Jehoshaphat knew that his army was no match for this force of allied nations.  What was even more frustrating was the fact that God had not allowed His people to invade or conquer those nations during the time of the Exodus, and the King could not understand why God did that and now allowed them to come against His people with overwhelming force.

 
So, what did Jehoshaphat do?
Send a party out to try to ask for peace?
Capitulate and surrender?
Gather his generals together and call up reinforcements and fight the battle under their own power?

No.  He called all of the people together for prayer. 

He prays publicly, himself, and says these words.

¹⁰ And now behold, the men ofAmmon and Moab and Mount Seir, whom you would not let Israel invade when they came from the land of Egypt, and whom they avoided and did not destroy— ¹¹ behold, they reward us by coming to drive us out of your possession, which you have given us to inherit. ¹² O our God, will you not execute judgment on them? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.”

Well spoken!

In times of difficulty, uncertainty and crisis, there is nothing we can do that will be more effective than going to God as Jehoshaphat did. Acknowledging our own inability, our own might, but looking to the Sovereign One who is our refuge and strength.

It’s a great story as to how God brings Judah the victory.  Instead of giving them a fool proof battle plan of strength, God instructs the King to put the “choir” up front, going ahead of the fighting men.  A group of singers, “praising the beauty of holiness”.

Here is how the story ends:

²⁰ And they rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. And when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the Lord your God, and you will be established; believe his prophets, and you will succeed.” ²¹ And when he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who were to sing to the Lord and praise him in holy attire, as they went before the army, and say,

“Give thanks to the Lord,
    for his steadfast love endures forever.”
²² And when they began to sing and praise, the Lord set an ambush against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah, so that they were routed. ²³ For the men of Ammon and Moab rose against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, devoting them to destruction, and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they all helped to destroy one another.

 

Every Pastor Would Understand!

I am fond of saying that being a Pastor is not a "job", it's a calling.

If it were a job, many of us would resign every Monday!

In fact, there is a book entitled "It Only Hurts On Monday: Why Pastor's Quit And What You Can Do About It." I have a Deacon here at Westmoreland Baptist that read that book years ago and he orders extra copies to give to new Deacons who come on board.  There is a lot of truth in that book.

Another dear friend and Deacon told me on several occasions, "You guys must be crazy to do this!"  Well...
Stress does come with the territory.  But who among us doesn't have to deal with stress.  The joy is, Pastors get to work through some special kinds of stress that may not be in the wheelhouse of most folks out there.  We do it because that is what God has called us to do, and no complaints here.  But I do often pray for God's grace, and over more than four decades in ministry, I have developed a hide somewhat like a Rhinoceros.

Sometimes folks can add to the stress - intentionally (and unintentionally) by comments, questions, and "important" items they want to share with us.
This morning I came across a blog post from Thom Rainer that I could really identify with.  It's called "Ten Sentences That Make A Pastor Cringe".  Every Pastor I know can relate, I'm sure.  You can read it by clicking  Here.

Have a nice day, and don't let the stress stop you.

Pray for Abby and Her Family

The picture at left is special to me.

Admittedly it looks a little weird, but it really has sentimental value to me.  It was given to me back in 2014 by Abby Lees (the young lady in the photo) and her Dad, Dave.

The occasion of the photo was after church one Sunday morning in May, 2014.  For those who may not know, the guy clowning around in the top hat was my Dad, Caudle Adkins Jr.  We didn't know it at the time, but that Sunday turned out to be the last time Dad would ever be in our church service. Shortly after he and I did the funeral service in Logan, WV for my Aunt Irene Stidham, who died on Mother's Day, Dad found himself in St. Mary's Medical Center with Congestive Heart Failure and Renal Failure.  On June 26th he went to Heaven.  That Sunday he showed up in the top hat was the last time I was ever in church with my Dad.

Sometime later that Summer, Dave and Abby brought me this photo, already framed, and it sits today in my office suite here at the church.  Dad always loved kids and they loved him.  He had some corny jokes for Abby and her brother that Sunday, and someone in the family snapped that picture.  I am glad they did.

It's amazing how Abby has grown over the 18 months or so since that photo was snapped.  Here is a current photo of her.

Abby is a sweet girl and has a great family, including brother, Drew, Mom, Jennifer, and Dave. They are very special to me and to our faith family here at Westmoreland Baptist.

Over the past few years Abby had begun to develop some curious health issues that baffled, not only her own parents, but also the local physicians that had tried to treat her symptoms.

Things got worse and the concerns in the family grew greater as she began to just "go out like a light", losing consciousness and experiencing convulsive symptoms.

Epilepsy was eventually ruled out, along with some other maladies, but no one seemed to be able to put a finger on what was causing these episodes.

As one can imagine, this became a frightening issue.  Dave and Jennifer began to get calls from school.  It would happen in Dance Class. It would happen in church services.

After several trips to Cleveland Clinic, Abby was diagnosed with a syndrome called POTS.

Her Dad has started a Blog which chronicles the family and personal issues involved when a family member has POTS.  you can read it here.

Let me encourage our readers to check this out, and above all to pray for Abby Lees and her family.  Their faith is strong, but they covet the prayers of other believers on their behalf.

Happy Birthday Freda Kimsey

When I check the status page on my blog, on any given day the views it receives may come from as many as 13-17 countries around the world.  It also shows me where the traffic comes from (various search engines, websites, etc).  The problem is, I never really know WHO is reading the blog. Oh, I know that close friends and family members read it regularly, and sometimes someone will leave a comment on a particular post that will let me know that person is reading it.  However there is one lady who seems to read my blog daily.  Even though I don’t always post daily.  In fact, when I don’t post to it in a while, she’ll send me an email to let me know she misses it.  Now THAT makes me feel like it matters to someone!

Well, tomorrow (Saturday, November 21^st) is that lady’s birthday, and if I should ever wish anyone a happy birthday on this site, it should be Freda Kimsey of Parkersburg, WV.  I don’t think Freda would mind me telling which birthday this is, since an 80^th birthday doesn’t come around very often.  In fact, it doesn’t come around at all for many folks.  Today is a day for Freda and her daughters, sons in law, grandchildren, and great grandchildren to celebrate, and we all should celebrate with her.

The Kimsey family’s story is a great American story.  She and her late husband, Dan (a career US Air Force veteran, who saw duty in Korea and Viet Nam) raised three daughters, and were great Christian examples to them and their families with a heritage that will last for generations.

Freda and Dan were married June 20, 1954 when she was only 18 years of age.  Dan passed away on June 5^th of last year, just 15 days shy of their 60^th wedding anniversary.  I was privileged to attend his memorial service in Parkersburg, and it was a fitting tribute to BOTH Dan and Freda and their lives well spent in service to God, Country, and Family.

As I said, Dan was a “Fly Boy”.  They were stationed at Lockbourne AFB and moved to Circleville, OH in 1955.  Freda soon became active in Circleville First Baptist Church around 1959.  Her faithful witness helped lead Dan to Christ and he came to faith in Jesus in 1961.  Freda worked in the church teaching Sunday School, VBS (back when it lasted 2 weeks) and was involved in Women's Missionary Union, holding various offices in WMU including president.

In April, 1963, Dan was transferred to Grand Forks AFB, and they immediately joined a church just off the base.  Even though only at Grand Forks for two years, Dan and Freda made many life long friends there.  1964 brought them back to Lockbourne and Circleville.  The church family and neighbors there became extended family to the Kimseys. 

When Dan retired from the USAF in 1972 they moved to West Virginia.  Once again, Freda made her home a welcome place to all her new friends and neighbors. She and Dan attended Marshall University football and basketball games regularly.  Eventually they settled in Parkersburg in 1978 and became active in the MU alumni association, where she even served as president.  She is still involved.  In retirement, Dan and Freda traveled regularly, visiting old friends and attending squadron reunions, etc.

It is an understatement to say that the last year and a half has been tough for Freda, her three girls, five grandchildren and nine great grandchildren, but they would all agree that they are blessed to have her in their lives.  She is a wonderful, godly woman, and a true prayer warrior.

Freda, you have been a great encouragement to this pastor for a number of years.  You are a blessing to many, and now we wish you a happy birthday, filled with the blessings of family and friends!

For Those Of Us Of A Certain Age - A Great Christmas Poem!

All this talk about Starbucks and Christmas has made me realize that Christmas is just around the corner.  Hard to believe it's going to be upon us soon (even though Thanksgiving is still a couple of weeks away).  How is it possible that it's Christmas again?  Didn't we just have it ...?
 
It all got me thinking about back when it seemed like Christmas would never come. Back in the '50s on Gallaher Street in Huntington, WV.  Back in the days when "boys were boys", and we got into everything that we could, most of it our mothers would have described as "mean-ness". 

There were sling shots and BB Guns.  Double Bubble Gum and Bazooka Joe, Turkish Taffy, RC Cola and Moon Pies.  There was stealing tomatoes from Mr. Black's garden, and buying cigarettes for 35 cents from the machine at the Dairy Cheer and smoking them behind the Beverly Theater.  There was the daily ritual of throwing of crab apples at the Curtis girls on the way home from Gallaher School.  And who remembers climbing over the fence after dark  and skinny dipping in the swimming pool they set up on the school playground every summer?  There was lots of stuff to get into, and we did what we could, but sure enough, when it got down to this time of year, there was a marked change in our behavior.

After all, Christmas was coming.

You know the line, "He sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake. He knows if you've been bad or good, so be good, for goodness sake!...".

Santa Claus was coming and we knew there had to be a marked change in our behavior.  When it was Christmas time, a guy HAD to be good.  And it was tough.

Years later, as a young father, myself, those memories were brought back to me by Carl D. Taylor, when we worked together in an Automobile Dealership in Ashland, Ky.  At Christmas time, Carl was prone to quote a poem, a long one he had learned by heart at a young age, It harkened back to the days (even back before the '50s) with a narrative by a young boy who understood what each of us went through at Christmas time when we had to be "as good as we could be"!

I haven't seen Carl in years, but through the miracle of Google, I did find that old poem recently.  In the spirit of the coming season, I thought I'd share it with you today.  Hope it brings back some sweet memories to you.

Jest 'Fore Christmasby Eugene Field (1850-1895)
Father calls me William, sister calls me Will,
Mother calls me Willie, but the fellers call me Bill!
Mighty glad I ain't a girl---ruther be a boy,
Without them sashes, curls, an' things that 's worn by Fauntleroy!

 Love to chawnk green apples an' go swimmin' in the lake---
Hate to take the castor-ile they give for bellyache!
'Most all the time, the whole year round, there ain't no flies on me,
But jest 'fore Christmas I 'm as good as I kin be!
 
Got a yeller dog named Sport, sick him on the cat;
First thing she knows she does n't know where she is at!
Got a clipper sled, an' when us kids goes out to slide,
'Long comes the grocery cart, an' we all hook a ride!

 But sometimes when the grocery man is worrited an' cross,
He reaches at us with his whip, an' larrups up his hoss,
An' then I laff an' holler, "Oh, ye never teched me!"
But jest 'fore Christmas I 'm as good as I kin be!

Gran'ma says she hopes that when I git to be a man,
I 'll be a missionarer like her oldest brother, Dan,
As was et up by the cannibuls that lives in Ceylon's Isle,
Where every prospeck pleases, an' only man is vile!

 But gran'ma she has never been to see a Wild West show,
Nor read the Life of Daniel Boone, or else I guess she 'd know
That Buff'lo Bill an' cowboys is good enough for me!
Excep' jest 'fore Christmas, when I 'm good as I kin be!

And then old Sport he hangs around, so solemn like an' still,
His eyes they seem a-sayin': "What's the matter, little Bill?"
The old cat sneaks down off her perch an' wonders what's become
Of them two enemies of hern that used to make things hum!

 But I am so perlite an' tend so earnestly to biz,
That mother says to father: "How improved our Willie is!"
But father, havin' been a boy hisself, suspicions me
When, jest 'fore Christmas, I 'm as good as I kin be!
 
For Christmas, with its lots an' lots of candies, cakes, an' toys,
Was made, they say, for proper kids an' not for naughty boys;
So wash yer face an' bresh yer hair, an' mind yer p's and q's,
An' don't bust out yer pantaloons, and don't wear out yer shoes;
 
 Say "Yessum" to the ladies, and "Yessur" to the men,
An' when they 's company, don't pass yer plate for pie again;
But, thinkin' of the things yer 'd like to see upon that tree,
Jest 'fore Christmas be as good as yer kin be!
















































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Random Thoughts

There is no one who can ask more questions than a four year old.  I'm laid up this week, spending much of my time in the recliner with my recently operated on right foot elevated.  My four year old grandson, who lives next door, has been coming in and out to visit me.  I have had the time to really pay attention to him and his actions and I have been amazed at how many questions he can ask.
His mind is like a sponge, and his curiosity is insatiable.  It is a joy watching and listening to him as he processes the steady stream of information generated by his inquisitive nature.

******

Does anyone else out there think the moderators on last night's Republican candidate debate asked more substantive questions than did their counterparts at CNBC on the last debate?  Questions seemed to be more focused on economics, foreign policy, immigration, and policy issues in general, and less on "gotcha" questions and stirring up hostile exchanges between candidates.  On the "not ready for prime time" earlier debate, recently demoted Gov. Chris Christie really seemed to dominate that group. Although not a great Christie supporter, I thought his performance was more suitable to be with the "big hitters" no matter what polling information indicates.

******

I have been invited to speak at the Veterans Day Program at my grandson's elementary school tomorrow morning.  I have attended the annual program there for the past few years.  They always do a great job in honoring the veterans who attend and the kids always have a great patriotic program.  To be honest, I am a little bit nervous about this program.  It's not that I'm nervous speaking to a large group of people, as I do that every Sunday morning.  It's the fact that they have invited me to be the speaker for this particular event.  I feel a bit like Paul when he compared himself to the other apostles. I definitely feel that I am the least among these veterans.  Among those who will be in the honored group are men like my father in law who served under General Patton in WWII, as well as other Korean and Viet Nam war veterans, along with Kosovo vets and men who have served in both Gulf Wars and in Afghanistan.  I have Viet Nam era service, but was never stationed overseas during my Air Force career.  I plan on talking about the fact that all veterans are trained to serve as combatants even though many primarily served in supportive roles.  I'm going to talk about the Oath of Service and what that means to every veteran who has served.  Should be an interesting time, and I know my grandson, Asher, is very excited about it.  This is his last year at Charles Russell Elementary, and he's proud that his Papaw is going to be the speaker.  Now I hope I don't let him down.  There is the pressure!

******

This Saturday, November 14th marks the 45th anniversary of the crash of a chartered Southern Airways jet that claimed the lives of 75 Marshall University football players, coaches, boosters, and flight crew, as it went down just short of the runway at Tri State Airport.  That rainy fall night is etched into the memories of anyone who had connections with the University in particular or the city of Huntington in general.
I had just transferred in that fall semester from Marshall to Free Will Baptist Bible College (now Welch College) in Nashville, TN.  My Saturday had been filled with intermural athletics, and laundry all afternoon.  There was no television in our dorm, and late that evening several of us were comparing notes and trying to get scores from our favorite teams.  Most of the guys there were SEC and ACC fans (since most of them were from the southeastern US) and those scores were most discussed.  I had asked several guys if they had heard anything about the Marshall vs. East Carolina game, and somebody said "I think I heard that East Carolina won".  That was about all the information I could get, since Al Gore was still a reporter for "The Tennessean" then and had not yet invented the internet.
It wasn't until after lights out, as I lay in my bunk with my earphones plugged into the radio, listening to WMAK, that I heard the report on the 11:00PM news cast that a plane carrying the Marshall University football team had crashed in Kenova, WV.
I rushed to the pay phone in the stair well and called home (collect) and stood in stunned silence as Dad told me the information that was coming in over the local television stations from the crash site.
I had been in numerous freshmen classes with several of the now varsity players who were on the ill fated flight.  Our neighbor, Ken Jones, the sports director of WHTN channel 13 was on the flight. My Dr. was aboard.  Several other boosters and local business people - many from our neighborhood, several of them parents of my friends and former classmates were also among the dead.  I would imagine there were very few people in Huntington who were not personally touched in some way by the tragedy on that long ago November night.
I remember feeling so helpless, and so far away.
It's been 45 years since that terrible night, and I still remember it like yesterday.

Get Over It, and Get On With The Mission !

Well, the latest uproar in the so called "Culture War" revolves around Starbuck's new "Christmas Cups" for 2015.  Some well meaning evangelicals are bemoaning the fact that Starbucks has
de-Christmasized the seasonal cups - thereby advancing the attack in the ongoing secular "war on Christmas".

Fellow believers, let's slow down and take a rational look at things.

First of all, Starbuck's previous "Holiday Cups" have never made reference to Christmas itself, nor to the true meaning of the holiday.  A quick check of Google Images will show that the previous years seasonal cups had white tree ornaments, or snowflakes, or doves decorating the cup over the same red background that makes up this year's cup. No "Star of Bethlehem", no nativity scene, no shepherds or maji, nor images of the Christ Child.  Certainly no inscription of "Merry Christmas".

They were simply "Holiday Cups", not "Christmas Cups" any way.  Deal with it!

Secondly, why should we really expect a totally secular business enterprise to endorse the centerpiece of the Christian faith?  I mean, really.

Like many other Christ followers, I do regret the secularization of America.  Since the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock, there most certainly has been a strong Christian influence in the United States.  While our founders were most certainly not all devoted followers of Christ, there was a strong recognition of the existence of a Sovereign God, and a belief in the value of His written Word.  These are evidenced by references to Him in our founding documents and other writings by the founders, and to the practice of taking oaths of office, or giving testimony in court with a hand placed on the Bible.  Without a doubt, our legal codes are based on the Commandments of the Bible, and our society was heavily influenced by what we often call the Judeo-Christian ethic.

After WWII, as the second half of the Twentieth Century unfurled, the Christian influence in our culture, slowly began to erode.  While this erosion has been slow and steady, those of us who have lived through the cultural changes of the '60s and '70s can look back and identify some of the key events that highlight those changes.  Now, here in the second decade of the 21st Century,  we can safely say that we are not a Christian nation.  Even though references to God still exist in inscriptions on the Supreme Court building, in our pledge of allegiance to our flag, and a slogan on our money, a true reliance on the Supreme Being no longer exists at large in the USA.

Those of us who do worship our God and have placed our trust in Jesus Christ, deeply regret the Christless condition of our present culture.

But why should we be surprised?

The Cross of Christ is a reproach to this world.  The message of Salvation has long been anathema to those who do not believe.  Christians have been persecuted and despised by the world system since Christianity's earliest days (see Acts 4) and persecution and martyrdom of Christ followers has intensified throughout the centuries (see Foxes Book of Martyrs).  And even today, our fellow believers are being persecuted with ostracism, imprisonment, and even death in many countries around the world.  Why should we expect a secular culture to cater to our beliefs.  Furthermore, why should we expect any better treatment that was afforded our Lord?

Jesus put it this way:
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹ If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. ²⁰ Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you..."  (John 15:18-20a ESV)

Finally, we believers spend an awful lot of time and energy fighting those things that we perceive to be a threat to our beliefs. 

Don't get me wrong.  We hold to Truth.  Truth is not a concept, Truth is a Person, Jesus Christ. We also hold to the truth of the written Word.  Sin is sin and we recognize it as such.  Sin when it is finished brings forth death.  There is no cure for sin other than the application of the precious blood of Jesus as we by faith receive the gracious gift of God through Christ alone.

We live in a depraved world, and a dark culture.  Too often we spend our time railing at the culture around us.  We've done a pretty good job so far of letting the world know what we are against.

It's time we do a better job of letting the world know what we are FOR.  Things like Grace, Mercy, Love, Forgiveness, Eternal Life, Abundant Life and a personal relationship with God.

We are called to be Ambassadors of Christ.  We have been reconciled to God through Christ Jesus, and He has called us to a ministry of reconciliation. Perhaps we should spend more of our time and energy finding ways to share the Good News of Christ, rather than protesting, ranting on social media, and trying to force a godless culture to confirm to our beliefs.

Only Christ can change lives, and he does. 

Share the Gospel.  Tell the Christmas story - the story of Jesus.  Endeavor to show the Love of Christ in your life and, "always be ready to give an account for the hope that is in you...", and leave the rest to the Holy Spirit.