STUFF I’VE LEARNED THAT SEMINARY DIDN’T TEACH ME #26

Some hills are not big enough to die on. You’ve heard that I am sure. It’s true that there are matters in church life that cannot be compromised or your leadership is jeopardized. Moral and doctrinal issues require that we draw a line in the sand. There will be other decisions that demand you dig in your heels or you will not move forward. Then, there are many matters where you can try a different way or pray and wait for a more opportune time. 

Always remember that in contentious issues, there will be collateral damage if you bull ahead. Some on the periphery will not understand. Immature Christians may not grasp what has occurred. There are often family members that are wounded. I am not saying that can always be avoided. Yet, one must ask if this particular issue is worth doing that. I have found that if there are a few folks or a pet program that might be hindering the progress of the ministry that time may win them over or at least neutralize their influence—and the pet program, if not fed, dies of natural causes.

You can often plow around a stump. You do not have to dynamite them all!  When you blow up a stump, it makes a lot of noise and stirs up a lot of dirt.

STUFF I’VE LEARNED THAT SEMINARY DIDN’T TEACH ME #21

Don’t sweat the small stuff. Ask yourself, “Will this matter in a hundred years?”  Before you dig in your heels inquire, “Is this a matter of principle or preference?”  If principle, then you cannot afford to compromise, but if preference it may be too costly not to compromise.  There are some things in church life where we must say this way or no way, but also a goodly number where we can ask, “is there a better way?”

STUFF I’VE LEARNED THAT SEMINARY DIDN’T TEACH ME #17

Trust your wife’s intuition. Pontius Pilate should have listened to his wife. As Jesus was on trial before the Roman Governor, she warned,  “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for today I’ve suffered terribly in a dream because of him.”  (Matthew‬ ‭27:19‬ ‭CSB‬‬). That turned out well for us, as God accomplished His work of redemption for sinners through the hands of sinful men. It didn’t turn out well for Pilate, as he sought to wash his hands of injustice.  Water had no power to cleanse the guilt in his soul. 

Women seem to have an intuition that men do not have. God has wired the sexes up differently. My wife notices things that I am oblivious to and senses things that I am not aware of. There have been numerous times she has saved my hide by telling me what the results of my actions will be before I take them. Some times I have pressed on in a particular matter, thinking, “That’s not an issue!”  I found out that it was!

God has given you a precious gift if you have a godly wife. Mine prays for me, reads her Bible, and gives me a perspective I do not have and that I need. Seminary professors are great in what they teach, but your wife will instruct you in things you cannot learn in a classroom.