Weekly Devotional: Gems From Pastor Jim 8/10/2020

by Jim Hughes

Ezek. 34:1-2 Then this message came to me from the LORD, “Son of man prophecy against the shepherds, the leaders of Israel. Give them this message from the Sovereign LORD: Destruction is certain for you shepherds who feed yourselves instead of your flocks. Shouldn’t shepherds feed their sheep?”

This devotional today is about pastors and for pastors. In the Scriptures pastors are often depicted as being shepherds, overseers of the people entrusted to them. This passage is a stern warning for pastors. God is warning those who are overseers who look out for themselves at the expense of their people. These are people who feed off of people instead of feeding people. God declares very clearly that their destruction is certain.

If you have a pastor who is not taking care of his people, you must do something about it. If you are not being fed, you are starving your soul to death. Your pastor has the responsibility to lead you into the Word where your soul can be fed. Only as you are continuously fed the Word are you able to feast and grow. Your pastor must constantly feed and challenge you on so that you don’t get lazy or satisfied with where you are at. Your pastor must stand guard over your soul so that any potential danger can be addressed before you are harmed.

A pastor who is not feeding his people is not fit to serve as a pastor. It is a grave sin for a pastor to take advantage of people or use them for personal gain. Anyone who would be more concerned about themselves and their personal comforts than they are about the needs of the people they serve will feel God’s wrath. Pastors should always feed their people.

Dear friend, hold your pastor accountable, but when you do, hold yourself accountable as well. No matter how well your pastor may be feeding you, you have to do your part. You must take what is being offered to you, chew on it, and swallow it before it can do you any good. You must be careful what you feast on and avoid those things which are bad for your spiritual health. You must be discerning and feast on what you need. What you need today may be different than what you need tomorrow. Listen to the Spirit of God and chew on what you need and not just what you want.

Don’t rely just on what your pastor may offer you. A once-a-week feeding binge will not meet your spiritual needs. You must be taking care of your soul daily. Your pastor can only do so much for you. Pray much for your pastor. If your pastor is feeding your soul, support, encourage, and thank your pastor often.

About the Author:

Spending his formative years in Ft. Wayne, IN, Jim followed the love of his life to southeast Iowa where they married and have spent the majority of their lives. Jim has pastored several churches throughout his life and has worked many years in local factories to help support his family. The father of two married adult children and one son still at home, Jim is a first-time author.

C Through Marriage came into being through many years of pastoral and life experiences. The book first took on a life of its own over 20 years ago when I sought to address the much publicized moral failures of prominent leaders in the church. In the chapter on Chasity, I include the guideliness that I developed then to protect one's self from such failures.

I am a firm believer in order to make sense out of life you have to use much common sense. We need to get back to the basics of what has worked for many, many generations. If is isn't broke, why try to fix it? I strive to return to the basics of what really works in all my writings.