CATALYST FOR GROWTH

My nephew, Scott, drove in from New York Friday to attend a meeting in our area on Saturday.  He brought his dad along so we could visit while he attended his meeting. Our son, Troy came over Saturday morning to spend some time with his Uncle Dick as well. It was a casual time of sitting in the cool of our front yard while visiting and swapping stories! 

I’d like to share some of Dick’s spiritual journey with you today.

Dick is Italian through and through! I met him when he started dating my sister, Beverly, back in the late 1960’s. I liked him immediately because he had the coolest Ford Mustang [I would have been about fourteen]!

Dick was a colorful addition to our family! He used language that wasn’t typically used in our family. He was outgoing and loved to laugh! Our family stretched to include him and enfolded his young son, Scotty, as well! Our parents – Leonard and Hazel Haire – enfolded Dick fully! He came to love and appreciate them until their deaths [Hazel – 1981; Leonard, 1992]. Their godly influence and full acceptance helped Dick’s transformation!

Few people know it, but Beverly and her best friend, Nancy, met two Italian guys at a skating rink. Dick and Dom were a bit older than they were, but they each became couples that stayed together through the years!  Dick was an AMAZING roller-skater! I’m told that when he went out on the floor, the skaters would clear the floor as he would show off his remarkable skills! 

On December 2, 1967, Bev and Dick were married in our home in New Brighton, PA. They got almost 58 years in before Beverly died in June, 2025. 

They lived life to the fullest! Their month-long vacations every March/April to resorts in Florida were famous for family get-togethers, relaxing by the pool, eating out and fun! One year, they took our son, Travis, with them and treated him to a trip to Disney [something that we were simply not able to afford].

Dick is a giver! He picks up the bill when a crowd goes out to eat! They put in a backyard swimming pool and Debbie and I camped in their backyard for our vacation for several years. Our kids absolutely loved Aunt Bev and Uncle Dick. For sixteen years, Dick worked at Tobin Meats. When we went to his house, we ate steak [something that was uncommon in the Haire house].

But I primarily want to talk about Dick’s spiritual pilgrimage. Meeting, dating and marrying Beverly changed Dick’s world forever!  Beverly put her faith first! To honor her, Dick would often attend worship with her at the campus Free Methodist Church in North Chili, NY. At that time, it had a congregation of nearly a thousand! He made lots of friends there. Over the years, Beverly attended several other churches. Dick didn’t always go, but he did always honor her faith!

In the course of time, Dick became friends with a professor from Roberts Wesleyan College. He was one of my Bible/Greek professors – Stanley Magill. Dick frequently ran into Prof Magill at a Greek restaurant down the street from the campus.  Dick smoked cigars at the time and Prof loved the smell of his cigars 😲 They forged a friendship that was influential in Dick’s spiritual pilgrimage!

Many of their friends came from Beverly’s Christian associations.  All along the way, Dick’s world became immersed in a faith community!  Then, God intervened and sent an Italian pastor to the Pearce Memorial Church. His name was Dr. V. J. Mannoia. He immediately connected with Dick and they spoke a language that bonded them as friends. It was during this period that Dick began to lead the prayer before our meals in his home. He often teared-up as he prayed! You could tell that it was meaningful for him to talk with God publicly! 

HOWEVER, new believers are not transformed overnight!  His language stayed colorful! Even yesterday, I giggled inside as we talked in the front yard!  I’m sure that Troy did too! I think we place too high expectations on new believers! Transformation is not an overnight experience!!!!!  It takes time!  Lots of time! 

Dick is an emotional man!  He spoke through tears repeatedly Friday evening and Saturday! Of course, he is adjusting to life alone – now that Beverly has moved on to Heaven.

Dick will readily admit that he based his hope for Heaven on having Beverly as his wife! He consdered her to be his ‘ticket to Heaven’!  He lovingly cared for her through three years of increasing dementia and constant home care! He exhausted himself watching over her and protecting her! And she wasn’t always nice to him during this debilitating period! But Dick’s love persisted! He assured her that he would keep her at home as long as he possibly could. Here’s how he put it: “This is what I signed up for!”

When she died, Dick was lost! Their big house was empty! Everywhere he looked – he saw memories of her! He wept! He still weeps – a year later!  Our family enfolded Dick and their daughter, Heather, and their son, Scott. We assured him that he would ALWAYS be part of the Haire family!

Through this floundering season, Dick began sitting at their kitchen table every morning and started reading the Bible with a cup of coffee and a light breakfast.  He tells me that he still reads it every morning! He says:

“Harold, I don’t always know what I’m reading, but I just keep reading. Then, I pray! I tell God that I’m not sure what it meant, but I’m not giving up! I tell Him how much I miss Bev. I pray for my kids. I pray for our president [whose picture is pasted on the garage door in front of him]. And I thank Him for all He's done for me!”

This is how Dick starts every day now!  He’s taking responsibility for his own faith! Beverly’s departure has catalyzed him into owning his faith in a personal way! IT’S A GOOD THING!  He’s forming his own relationship with God – perhaps for the first time! 

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What a gracious and wonderful God we serve! How He has coordinated Dick’s life is AWESOME!

·        First He brought Beverly into Dick’s life!

·        Then the Haire family – especially Leonard and Hazel.

·        His friend Dom became a fervent man of faith – along with his wife, Nancy [Beverly’s best friend]!

·        Then, along came the spiritual fireball – Stanley Magill!

·        Then, God brought V. J. Mannoia to Pearce Church to solidify the deal!

·        Dick and Bev’s son, Scott Iachetta, is a vibrant man of faith who has played a leading role in his youth work over the years – as well as his church!  Scott and Robin’s godly influence has certainly strengthened Dick – especially now that Dick is alone!

And only God knows all the other details, connections, provisions and catalysts that God has maneuvered into Dick’s life to keep him on-track and grow him into the man he is today!

I praise the Lord for His goodness! 

Do you see yourself in Dick’s story? 

God doesn’t love Dick any more than He loves YOU!  God intervenes in your life in just as creative ways as He did for Dick! Stop and think about it! God brings people and situations into our lives to satisfy His purposes!  He wants us to grow! He wants us to fulfill His mission for our lives! He calls us continually to higher ground!

You haven’t shut Him out – have you?

Open yourself anew to God’s voice and His ways! You might be surprised to know that He’s closer than you think!

THE WINDS OF THE SPIRIT!

Debbie and I were in a blessed setting for Friday and Saturday! We attended the first ever Tri-Conference Session of the Harvest, Keystone and Ohio conferences of the Free Methodist Church!  

It was held at the Living Water FMC in Dalton, OH, which accommodated us with amazing hospitality and grace! Their worship team appeared at set times throughout the conference to lead us in meaningful times of experiencing the presence of God! The meals served were wonderful and done with speed and grace!  Host pastor, Mark Hirst, personally greeted each guest as we entered the church; he was also a frequent participant in the sessions.

Bishop Kay Kolde led the conference with assistance from two retired bishops. 

The Free Methodist Church – founded in 1860 – has been ordaining women since 1911. The first female bishop in any Free Methodist General Conference was Rev. Dr. Linda Adams. She was consecrated in 2024, marking a historic milestone in the denomination’s 160-year history.

Bishop Kolde ordained eight ministerial candidates as elders at the conclusion of the conference. Four candidates were male and four were female. Over one hundred elders present were invited to come forward and participate in the ‘laying on of hands’ during these ordinations! It was a visually powerful period!

The purpose of this tri-conference was to address the concerns of the need for greater cooperation and focus between conferences that actually share many common goals and purposes. Discussions have been held with key participants from each area out of a desire to change the momentum of the Free Methodist Church.

Bishop Kolde reminded us that the number of FM churches in America have fallen from 1050 to 825 over the past fifteen years [a decline that is mirrored in most – if not all – Christian denominations in America].  Leaders are consequently considering coordinated changes in emphasis and organization to address and reverse these declines through increased focus, evangelism and discipleship!

The spirit of support for these epic changes was tangible throughout the meetings in spite of the complexities involved in changing leadership structures, financial systems, and territorial alliances. The delegates clearly see the need for radical change in order to see the continuation of John Wesley’s call to “spread Scriptural holiness across the land and to preach the gospel to the poor.”

As a retired pastor in the FMC, it was refreshing to see the youthful surge of leaders and their willingness to cooperate and make concessions in order to see a return of biblical holiness and cultural impact as we move forward!

The conference ended on a totally positive note with an extended prayer time during which MANY went forward to be prayed with by the bishops and superintendents who were present!  No one left early! The presence of God was too captivating and engaging to even consider leaving Living Water’s massive sanctuary!

Bishop Kolde’s messages were challenging as she addressed the tri-conference from two key passages:

·         Isaiah 6 – where Isaiah is caught up in a powerful vision of heaven and responds to the call of God by saying: “Here am I – send me!” [v.8].

·         I Kings 19f – where Elijah is threatened by Queen Jezebel after killing 850 of her prophets of Baal and Ashtoreth.  After fleeing in fear, God ministers to him in unique ways and then sends him to Mt. Horeb – the mountain of God! Once there, Elijah witnesses the presence of God and is reassigned by God to return to ministry!

Debbie and I were proud to experience this influential conference along with our son, Troy, [later joined by his wife, Missy]. Troy was a delegate from Freedom Church in New Middletown, OH [where I served as pastor from 2003-2012].

Although these kinds of gatherings are a huge challenge to me because of my hearing issues, I am so glad we chose to attend and participate. Yes, the frustrations were great, but experiencing the presence of God is so worth the investment! We are refreshed and renewed with hope for the future and will continue to pray for our leaders as they direct us into a fruitful future! 

INSIGNIFICANT THINGS!

God uses seemingly insignificant things and people to get His work done and to teach those who love and serve Him!  Who else but God would write the story of the arrival of His Son and have Him spend His first night on earth lying as a newborn infant in a feeding trough for animals?  It catches us by surprise!  We expect high and lofty, but instead we get the commonplace. 

Now, there are times when God does use the awesome and mystifying.  Who can sit unmoved by Handel’s Messiah?  260 pages composed in just twenty-four days!  It brought a king to his feet in praise and adoration! 

But isn’t it comforting that God so often uses the commonplace?

He said to Moses: “What is that in your hand?” 

The answer was – a shepherd’s staff.

Do you realize how common a shepherd’s staff was in Moses’ day?

They were not the ornate staffs of expensive metals we see in cathedrals. 

Rather, they were a stick of wood picked up along the way with natural crooks in it and of sturdy size that would easily serve the needs of the shepherd in tending and protecting his sheep!

David, in his brash youth, stepped forward to face a giant!

When King Saul’s armor didn’t fit, he went to face Goliath with his weapon of choice – a sling and five smooth stones. We know the story, so we don’t laugh; but if we were hearing it for the first time, we’d think it ludicrous!  No club? No sword? No battle-axe?  Against a colossal brute? A leather sling?????

Elijah wanted to help the widow and her son in their poverty.

“What do you have?”

“Oh, I have a little oil and some flour.”

“Use the little you have and make me a loaf of bread.  If you obey, your flask will never run out of oil and your box will never be empty of flour.” 

And it was so. 

A group of thousands had remained in a wilderness area listening to Jesus teach for several days.  They were hungry.  Jesus didn’t want to send them away famished.  He asked His disciples, “How much do we have?”  Andrew was the only one to speak.  He reported that he had found a young boy with a lunch of five small loaves and two fish.  It was all Jesus needed to feed a large crowd!

In the first century, the village of Bethlehem was small and insignificant.  But many years earlier the prophet Micah had declared: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel.’”  You know the rest of the story.  Jesus, the Messiah, wasn’t born in mighty Jerusalem.  No.  He was born in a cave, among animals, in Bethlehem!

God simply isn’t limited in the way He does things!  After all, He is GOD!  He can do what He wants to do and when He wants to do it!  And He loves to surprise us! 

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NO ONE IS INSIGNIFICANT

If anyone was insignificant, it was Ross.  He lived several blocks from the church I led for thirteen years.  Due to an accident many years earlier, Ross couldn’t speak clearly.  He was always dirty and unkempt.  Most of the time he smelled really badly.  Very few attempted to engage him for the obvious reasons.  Yet, he was a regular attender.  His hair looked like it hadn’t met with a comb in ages.  Yet there he was week after week.  I tried so hard, time after time, to understand him, but with very little success.  Occasionally he’d stop by the church when he saw my car there and try to have a conversation with me. 

Even as the church grew, Ross continued to come.  He did have one friend in the church.  Harvey was a fellow that came real early on Sundays to distribute Sunday School materials.  He didn’t particularly care for the ways I was leading the church.  I had known him for many years because of our district camp meeting. As a kid, I had helped him ‘white-wash’ the trees at the campground.  I had respected him as a godly man because he was often blessed and would let out a loud melodic “Woo Hoo!” when he felt the moving of the Holy Spirit. 

But when I became his pastor, he seemed to see me as a threat to the homeostasis of the church.  He singlehandedly made ministry hard for me. Even when the church doubled in size, he could only see me as a threat. 

Yet, Harvey – unbeknownst to anyone but me – would periodically take Ross into the church’s furnace room and completely bathe him.  He would wash out Ross’ clothes and dry them.  He was Ross’ best friend!  Harvey seemed to be able to understand Ross better than the rest of us.  He exhibited genuine, tangible love for Ross, while most of us did our best to ignore him. 

In spite of the adversarial relationship I had to endure with Harvey, I always admired him for the love and attention that he doled out to Ross. Somehow, Ross had risen above insignificance to Harvey. 

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There is no one and no thing that is insignificant to God!  He made it all and He cares for it all! 

I look back and wonder why we didn’t at least try to do more for Ross.  If we had focused our efforts together, it seems that we could have helped him.  Was there a medical procedure that could have given him back his speech?  Could we have helped him learn to be more approachable?  How did so many of us manage to just ignore him Sunday after Sunday?  Where was the love of Christ in me when I was so systematically confronted by one of the least of these? 

God tested our church back then – and we failed the test! I must learn from this failure and be more aware and willing as I live out the rest of my days!

NO ONE IS INSIGNIFICANT TO GOD  -  NO ONE!!!!!

Be aware of that as you move through this day and this week!  Be alert to those who might be invisible to the crowd.  Speak to them.  Recognize them as a gift of God!  Lift their day!  You have the power to change their life!

WAKE-UP CALL

I’m an eclectic reader. I scribble notes when I find something that deserves more thought or deeper consideration.

Today was a long-needed ‘clean my study’ day!  I’ve been eliminating piles, sorting books, clearing my study carrell and sorting through various piles of articles, notes, clippings, jokes, memes and cartoons in hopes of establishing a friendlier [and less cluttered] workspace.

Mission accomplished!

I now have a GREATLY REDUCED pile of clippings that I don’t know what to do with. I’m eliminating one of those clippings by writing this blog. 😊

I apologize for not knowing the source for the information that I’m about to share.  It’s a half-page of handwritten notes that I copied from somewhere or something.  It’s clearly a fragment from a frequent topic I write about: the decline of Christianity in America. 

If you just rolled your eyes, you might be best to bail out now and save yourself some potential aggravation.

Here are the things that caused me – sometime during the past year – to scribble on the back of a piece of ‘scratch paper’:

Ø  88% of those raised in Christian homes in America leave the church when they leave home.

Ø  In America, it now takes 85 Christians to bring one person to Christ per year!  [Based on church reports:  An average church of 85 people tends to report one convert per year!]

Ø  In recent decades not one county in the United States could report a percentage increase in church attendance.

Ø  Christianity is increasing around the world but has been consistently declining in America for over fifty years.

Ø  In 1900, there were twenty-seven churches for every 10,000 Americans.  In 2000, there were twelve churches for every 10,000 Americans.

Ø  Less than one out of every four born-again American adults have shared their faith with a non-Christian in the past twelve months.

If these propositions have any semblance to an accurate portrayal of Christianity in America, then we have serious problems that need to be addressed!  You must  evaluate the authenticity of these reports.  I can’t verify their source, but my perception tends to confirm these observations! 

Upon returning from three years of living and teaching in northeast PRC, I painfully watched my home conference close the church that I led upon my return to the conference after attending seminary in Kentucky [1976].  At this time [2015], I had accepted a part-time ‘commuting pastor’ role in Kittanning, PA.

My appointment in 1976, to the Jeannette, PA Free Methodist Church was complex, challenging and fraught with complication!  I was twenty-three. I had led a small, rural church in the Hoosier Mountains of southern Indiana for a year and a half. I was highly educated. I was passionate and full of unrealistic expectations!

For those interested, I have written about this experience in a blog titled “HOW TO GROW A PASTOR”  -  Hal-lelujah!: HOW TO GROW A PASTOR

At Jeannette, I found myself leading a small congregation of about forty who were mostly older. We had a brand-new building on twelve acres in the middle of a growing neighborhood, however, the conflict over building had split the congregation!  With God’s help, the church began to grow as new converts joined us! Within two years I was preaching to over one hundred. It was exciting – of course!

A somewhat humorous story springs from this period. I was gone a great deal of the time, leaving my relatively new wife at home with our six-month-old son, Travis. One night I came home to find my suitcases on the front porch and the door locked!  When I called to Debbie, she shouted through the door: “If you want to be married to the church, you can just live in the church!”  It was – needless to say – a WAKE-UP CALL!

Some of my most effective ministry took place during this period. However, the opposition from the membership was cruel and controlling. So much so, that I requested a move after two years.  Within a very short time the congregation drifted back to forty!

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And now, thirty-four years later, the conference had closed the church and was selling the building and property!  Something in me wanted desperately to contact my superintendent and volunteer to try to revive this place of ministry! But, of course, doing so was totally unrealistic! And besides, in addition to reverse culture-shock, our lives were devastated by the fact that our son, Travis, had just died of cardiac arrest! I voluntarily retired a year later!

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WHY DO CHURCHES CLOSE?

The answer is simple!  In almost every case, churches close because they can no longer pay the bills!  They simply run out of money!

BUT WHY DO THEY REALLY CLOSE?

Because they lose their vision and get distracted and/or divided! 

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My experience has taught me that satan takes notice of growing churches! He finds a way to divide congregations. Conflict arises. Attendance drops. Tension fills the air.  Hostilities are exchanged.  Bitterness pervades the relationships that continue to strive for survival. 

In a message I gave recently at a church I had previously led, I included the following comment:

“I have learned a great deal about the devil’s tactics over the years.

For instance, do you realize that he leaves a great many churches alone? It took me a while to learn this, but many churches rarely have any spiritual opposition from Satan.

Why?

Because they’re not a threat to his kingdom!

o   They’re not growing by convert growth.

o   They’re plateaued or dying.

o   They don’t care about their community.

o   They’re in a state of internal conflict.”

I never want to be a part of a church that is not a threat to satan and his kingdom! We’re not propping up an institution! We’re the living body of Christ! We are His representatives intended to influence those who are lost and distracted! 

Broken churches lose their sense of mission!  Conflict passion replaces evangelism passion!

In American culture, we’re SURROUNDED with distracted people who are living with a false sense of security!  They think they’re good people – and indeed, in many ways, perhaps they are! But they’re NOT people on a mission for God! They’re NOT serving His purposes! So many pseudo-Christians have been inoculated with an infection-belief that they’re spiritually safe and secure and headed for Heaven. But in reality, they ignore God almost completely, fail to engage with His Word and make no effort to influence others to find their purpose in Him!

And churches decline – then close!

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CAN THIS TREND BE CHANGED?

Absolutely!  It IS CHANGING in some places across our country!  New ministry forms are surfacing that are genuinely making a difference in people’s lives! Some of these, we might barely recognize as part of the Church! Different methods and forms are being utilized that would likely feel strange to those of us who have been raised in the church. 

I can testify that creating change in the church is one of the hardest things to do on this planet!  It seems as though conservative, legalistic, predictable people have been most likely to align with Christianity throughout the last seventy years!  Creative individuals, innovators and inventive thinkers have been restricted, persecuted, excluded and ridiculed.  We’ve chased the ones away who could have been a catalyst for dynamic change and authentic renewal!

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WILL THE CHURCH REALIZE THIS AND ADAPT?

Remember Winston Churchill’s famous and brief speech?

“Never, never, never give up!”  😉❤️

Churches with people who sincerely love God and desire His will may be able to adapt and change to reach the lost with the transforming truth of the Gospel!  They will be people who care less about things being pleasing to THEM – but actually care about their family members, their neighbors, their co-workers and their friends and their future destiny!  They will be people who desperately want as many as possible to see and hear the Truth and adopt it into their lives! 

I want to be part of that movement – do you?

MY FRIEND EDDIE

Eddie was one of my church friends when I was a teenager.  His family was deeply invested in the New Brighton Free Methodist Church, just like mine! We saw one another on Sunday morning, Sunday evening and at other youth or church events. He was three years older than me, but when I hit high school, we began running around together. He had a VW  ‘bug’. Four of us would run the country roads on Sundays and then rush to get back in time for the youth group meeting at 6:30. We kept bathing suits in his car so that if we came across a pond or creek – we could swim.

Eddie was a daredevil! He would try anything! We got stuck in fields and backwoods areas frequently but always managed to get out. Being older, he would pick me up – with a few select friends – and we would fly to Beaver Falls for lunch. [We had over an hour for a lunch period since our school had no cafeteria.]  It was always an exciting and dramatic hour as we flew down country roads to try to get back to school on time!

Eddie was a good friend, but not necessarily a good influence. 🙄

During my senior year, Eddie’s number came up and he was drafted into the Army. As his departure date drew closer, he became very serious and started to withdraw from us. Despite his wild side, Eddie was not a fighter!  I believe that he really struggled with his impending future.

His parents had a party for him at their house in Beaver. Eddie spent the entire time upstairs with his family. His departure date was close. Some of us went to the Pittsburgh Airport to see him off. It was back when you could go out on a roof and watch the plane board.  He never looked our way or waved.

I graduated that spring and went to Roberts Wesleyan College in North Chili, New York.  In January, I began the second term of classes which included General Psychology.  There were very few professors that I didn’t care for, and this class was taught by one of them. 

I received a call from home one day telling me that Eddie had been killed in Viet Nam! I was devastated! I went to my class but was totally distracted. The professor noticed it and called me out for daydreaming. I ended up failing that class and had to repeat it with the same professor!

I would later attain a M.A. in Counseling! It was a little embarrassing to have failed General Psych!

I struggled for the rest of that semester! Suddenly, the war in Viet Nam took on a personal meaning for me! Of course, I went home for the funeral. Our pastor was a staunch, stern man named C. D. Weinel.  He had proven his love for the youth of the church by having a ‘Rap Session’ with us on Wednesday evenings. He promised that nothing we said there would be shared outside that room! We trusted him. He never broke his word.

He maintained contact with Eddie and counseled with him during his last days at home. Their correspondences indicated that Eddie had put his trust in Christ for his salvation. He shared some excerpts from Eddie’s letters and they were very encouraging.

I still think of Eddie from time to time. I’ve run my fingers over his name on ‘The Wall’ in Washington numerous times! I was thrilled when they brought ‘the travelling Wall’ to East Liverpool while we were there. I visited it several times that week!

He was one of the many casualties of a confusing and complicated war.  I’m thinking of him again on this Memorial Day! I take comfort in the fact that someday I will have the opportunity to enjoy his friendship again!

Rest in peace Edward Allen Bischoff!  YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN!

GOD’S RESPONSE TO AN EVIL KING

I typically try to inscribe three chapters a day in my granddaughter’s Bible. This morning it was my delight to cover I Kings 17-19.

After trudging through chapters about the early kings of Israel and Judah, these three chapters give a delightful break!

The last king mentioned is Ahab.  He is described:

Ahab son of Omri did even more open evil before GOD than anyone yet – a new champion in evil…He made the God of Israel angrier than all the previous kings of Israel put together.  [I Kings 16:30,33]

 

[All quotes from The Message Bible unless otherwise noted]

Upon reading of the continual descension of the faithfulness of israel’s kings, it would be appropriate to ask the question: HOW WILL GOD DEAL WITH SUCH AN EVIL KING AS AHAB?

The answer to that question is clearly given in chapters 17-19.

God responded to the evil king Ahab – and his even more evil wife, Jezebel – by sending an unknown prophet, Elijah, to Ahab with a message.

It’s a perfectly logical response!  Ahab is the epitome of evil!  Elijah is a picture of humility, submission and obedience to God! 

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For those who haven’t read these chapters recently, here’s a synopsis:

God sent Elijah to tell Ahab that as punishment for his evil ways, Israel would experience a three-year draught with absolutely no rain!

After delivering this message, God sends Elijah into a wilderness area near a stream and has birds bring him food to eat every morning and evening!  This sounds preposterous, doesn’t it?  But my response is one that comes from a chorus I learned when I was young:

“God said it!

I believe it!

That’s good enough for me!”  😊

When the brook dried up [due to the draught], God sent Elijah to a nearby village where he was to meet a woman.  Upon his arrival, Elijah found a woman preparing to bake a loaf of bread for herself and her son from the last of her flour and oil. Elijah asks her to first make him a bisquit and then prepare the rest for her and her son.  She explained to him that she sincerely expects that they will then die of starvation.

However, Elijah assures her that her jar of flour and bottle of oil will not run out until God sends rain on the land and ends the draught.  Elijah was cared for by the widow after that until her young son became sick and died.  She carried him to Elijah in anger that he had died.

Elijah prayed earnestly for the boy and he came back to life!

When three years had passed, God sent Elijah to talk with Ahab.  Ahab and his servant, Obadiah, had been vigorously searching everywhere for Elijah!  Obadiah was a God-honoring man who had protected a large group of prophets during the draught by hiding them away and bringing them food and water. 

AN INTERESTING FOOT-NOTE:

I find it interesting that God had planted a righteous man in close proximity to King Ahab!

I wonder how many world leaders have godly men or women in their midst as an influence?

A couple of years ago, I came across a news report about a Chinese evangelist named Zhou Jinxia who was arrested after trying to share the Gospel with Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan.  ChinaAid says Jinxia frequently holds evangelistic signs outside a gate the couple regularly passes through. She is described as “an unbreakable, irrepressible Christian woman.” 

God always has a plan!  God plants Christian people near world leaders all of the time!  😉

Elijah meets Obadiah and has him deliver a message to King Ahab. Ahab is to call all of the people of Israel – including the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of the goddess Asherah together at Mt. Carmel.

When this gathering takes place, Elijah challenges the prophets of Baal to a contest to see whose God is the real god!  Elijah challenges the Baal prophets to build an altar and make a sacrifice BUT NOT TO LIGHT IT ON FIRE!  They are to pray for their god to light the sacrifice on fire!

Being a gentleman, Elijah let the prophets of Baal go first!  He teases them as they pray and cry out to their god all day long! Then, he builds his own altar using twelve stones representing the twelve tribes of Israel.  He prepares the sacrifice and then drenches the altar with buckets and buckets of precious water.  Finally, Elijah prayed:

“O God, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, make it known right now that you are God in Israel, that I am your servant, and that I’m doing what I’m doing under your orders. Answer me, God; O answer me and reveal to this people that you are God, the true God, and that you are giving these people another chance at repentance.”

 

Immediately the fire of God fell and burned up the offering, the wood, the stones, the dirt, and even the water in the trench.

All the people saw it happen and fell on their faces in awed worship, exclaiming, “God is the true God! God is the true God!”   [I Kings 18:37-39]

 

After killing all of the prophets of Baal, Elijah prays for rain! He repeatedly sends his servant to the cliff to look out over the sea.  Repeatedly the servant returns with a report of no sign of clouds.  But finally – the seventh time – the servant returns and reports that he sees a cloud…very small, no bigger than someone’s hand, rising out of the sea,

Elijah warns Ahab to run for cover because a great storm is about to arrive.

There’s more to this story, but I’ll let those of you who are interested to pick it up and read it in I Kings 19.

 I suppose you’ve gotten the message.

 WHAT IS GOD’S RESPONSE TO AN EVIL KING?

 A RIGHTEOUS, HUMBLE AND OBEDIENT SERVANT!

Someone just like you or me!  Someone who believes and obeys God!  Someone who acts when God speaks!  Someone whose influence is impeccable!  A man or woman of courage and conviction! 

Don’t dare limit what God could accomplish through you – if you would just submit to His leadership in your life!  

A FATHERS INFLUENCE PARTICULARLY ON SONS

A quick review of Israel’s development:

o   Slaves in Egypt

o   Delivered by Moses

o   Conquered Canaan with Joshua

o   Ruled by judges for at least 200 years

o   Period of the kings: Saul, David, Solomon

o   The kingdom divided into Israel (north) and Judah (south)

Faithful to God’s prediction, Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, became the king of Israel; however, eleven tribes rejected him and walked away.  They chose Jeroboam to be their king and Rehoboam continued to rule over just the tribe of Judah.

When reading through this period there is a troubling, recurring phrase. The following is in regards to Abijah, the son of Rehoboam.

“He continued to sin just like his father before him.”  [I Kings 15:3]

Now, Abijah had free will! His father had died and he became king. But, his father’s influence had been so strong – so influential – that Abijah simply followed in his father’s footsteps!  Unfortunately, Jeroboam’s example was a bad one!

The above verse end by lamenting:

“He [Rehoboam] was not true-hearted to GOD as his great grandfather David had been.”

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You may have seen pictures or scenes of a little boy trying to keep pace with his father’s footsteps or clomping about in his father’s shoes.

If a father is available, there is a natural alignment with the son because of the shared sexual identity.  Typically, this will continue into the young teen years.

I’ve spoken many times of the phenomenon that often takes place around puberty when a child begins to turn to the opposite-sex parent [if available].  I’ve assumed this to be a God-designed transition with the purpose of allowing the opposite-sex parent the opportunity to guide the child through the process of understanding and relating to the opposite sex.

If this is an accurate portrayal, then one can only imagine the impact that can result from having a father who:

§  Is largely absent [or simply not there due to divorce, death or other reasons]

§  Tends to think that parenting is part of the mother’s role

§  Is hyper-focused on career, hobbies and personal pursuits

§  Is angry, disconnected, distant and distracted

Much of the disfunction we see in American culture could very well be linked or explained by these realities.

God intended for children to be raised in a home with a mother and a father. Their roles are variant but essential! Their dual-engagement with children is vital!

We must remember that the image of God is reflected in both the male and the female:

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 

[Genesis 1:26-28  NASB]

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The example the father sets for his children is powerful and formative! If this role is magnified it can be massively influential. However, if it is ignored or abused, it can be gravely impactful in negative ways.

Counselors can help to rectify some of the damage done by an absent or distracted father, but the haunting longing for what should-have-been will travel with those children throughout their lives. Only God – the Heavenly Father – can bring total healing to those wounded hearts!

Heavenly Father:

We value the intimacy You imply by making Yourself known to us through this familiar term!

You created us!

You offer us redemption!

You love us persistently!

You give us gifts!

You know the number of the hairs on our heads.

You long for us to follow and honor You!

Bless and challenge the men who read this blog!

Help us to step up to the challenge of being godly men!

Lead us.

Guide us.

Use us.

Grow us into Your image!

 

Enable us to be difference-makers in our home and culture!

For Your Kingdom’s sake.

Amen!