Pray for Rural Churches and Pastors
February 26, 2010 at 5:14 pm | Posted in churches, pastors, prayer, rural | Leave a commentTags: pray for rural churches, pray for rural pastors, rural pastors, shepherd
My wife and I like to go for drives in the country. We like to pack a lunch and a thermos of coffee and get a map and go. Many times we have no particular destination in mind. We will find somewhere to stop along the way. We especially like historic sites or old bookstores, or just a pullover to enjoy a sight, have lunch and enjoy each other’s company. In fact this past weekend we were able to drive through some of southwestern Ohio’s farm country. We had a great time.
Even though I like driving through or visiting in the country I am not sure I know what rural life is like. For me I think it might be difficult. Ministry in a rural area might be difficult, but there are people there and they need good pastors and good churches. So let’s take some time to pray for rural churches and their pastors this weekend.
Pray that:
- God would call men and equip them to serve in rural areas.
- Rural churches without a pastor would earnestly call out to God for Him to send them a faithful shepherd.
- The pastor would shepherd the people with integrity of heart and skillful hands (Ps. 78:70-72).
- These churches would support and provide for their pastor and his family.
- The pastor would love the people and the people would love the pastor.
- The pastor would preach the Word in the power of the Holy Spirit.
- The people would listen and grow in the power of the Holy Spirit.
- The unsaved in the community would be reached and God would add to His church.
- The pastor and church would be glad for who they are and where they are and not compare themselves with other pastors or churches.
Maybe you know someone who pastors a rural church. Maybe you know a rural church. You could pray for them today. They may not know it, but God will know you prayed. You, and I and the Kingdom of God will be better off because we took time to intercede for some of our brothers and sisters and their Kingdom presence in their communities.
Thanks for praying,
Bill
(Romans 15:13; Isaiah 50:7; Psalm 50:23)
You have longed for sweet peace and for faith to increase,
And have earnestly, fervently prayed;
But you cannot have rest or be perfectly blest
Until all on the altar is laid.
– Hoffman –
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October 29, 2016 at 2:01 pm | Posted in pastors, Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: Colossians, commentary, cross focused reviews, Sufficiency of Christ
Book Review
Christ All Sufficient, An Exposition of Colossians by Brian G. Hedges
This is a new work, published in 2016 to add to the list of commentaries on Colossians. The author is the pastor of a local church and writes with that perspective in mind. As you read through the commentary you will see that this author is also a scholar.
Even though in the introduction Hedges claims that this is not a technical commentary, he says that he has benefited from the scholarship of others (pp. 15-16). He makes good use of endnotes and gives the reader a very good Selected Bibliography. The bibliography will give you an idea of some good commentaries to buy and use.
The outline will help students of Colossians as they study through the book. The theme of Christ being all sufficient for the believer is upheld throughout its pages. It is easy to read, understand and apply the truth from its pages.
Reading through the commentary you will find a textual approach with insight into the meaning of what is being said and how it applies. It’s almost as if you are reading his sermons on Colossians. That is a good thing.
Pastors will find this a good addition to their libraries because it will offer a practical balance to technical, scholarly works. I personally benefited from it and wish I had it in my library while I was preaching through the book of Colossians.
I received this book for free for review purposes from http://www.crossfocusedreviews.com and was not required to give a favorable review. I give the book four stars out of five. Buy a copy for yourself and buy one for your pastor.