A Pastors Heart
A Pastors Heart
When God gives a man a heart to shepherd His people, just know the responsibility is huge. Way beyond the scope of this writing. I take the call on my life with God very seriously. I know my judgment with God will be greater then yours. I know that if I teach wrong doctrine, or lead people astray I risk my life with God.
So when I tell you about the one thing that grieves me the most as a Pastor, will you not turn it into something it isn’t. God has shown me so much revelation through His Word, through personal words from Holy Spirit, Jesus and the Father that I can’t help but want to share them.
The grief comes to me when I teach the same thing over and over again and the people just won’t change. The area I want to talk about with you is when you are struggling.
You see, I know how the enemy works in our lives. I know what he says to you when you are facing the most tremendous obstacles. I know what voices are being heard in the mind of the person who desperately needs prayer but is being told the Pastor is too busy. Or you don’t really need prayer. God has heard your confession.
My dear Christian, every human being suffers trials and struggles at times in our lives. It’s part of life. It’s a promise in the Word of God. It’s part of the growing experience of being a living being in a world that is in terrible shape.
But there is never an excuse to not call someone and get prayer. Ever! To sit at home and hope someone is praying is a invitation for the Devil himself to show up in your bedroom. You and I were never designed to be lone islands. We were never designed to just talk to God and hope for the best.
When you are struggling with issues that need prayer, to not ask for prayer grieves me. When I hear that a person has been broken, hurting or sick and they never bothered to ask for prayer, I grieve for them. The problem is I now am sharing the struggle and I wasn’t designed for that. I was designed by God to set you free.
But the Devil has other plans. And he will make sure you hear them loud and clear without realizing they are his. He will speak to you as if you have heard your own voice. “Don’t bother the Pastor. He’s going to tell you this or that about yourself. Or he will tell you that you need to repent and let him pray! You can do it yourself!”
Listen to me, please. I have a Pastors heart. I grieve when you grieve. I hurt when you hurt. I long when you long. But when I hear that you have been doing it on your own and never bothered to pick up the phone and do what’s right in Gods sight, I grieve for a different reason.
Are you sick? What the does the Word of God tell you to do? Then do it! Call your Pastor or the Elders to come to your home and pray for you. Maybe you like being sick. God doesn’t like that your sick. Jesus surely doesn’t like it. He went to the Cross to cover the matter for you. So what is it that would keep you from making that call?
I can’t tell you how many times I have offered to call people on Facebook who are sick. Out of hundreds of times that I’ve offered, I almost always get some excuse from the sick person or from the person who posted that they need prayer. Meanwhile, they lay in bed sick and could have been healed through prayer.
Honestly, this is spiritual warfare, but I’m trying to grow you up and mature you in Christ. I’m trying to get you to see there’s a better way. Follow the Word of God. It’s a place of safety.
I’ve gone to hospital rooms to pray for the sick. Just recently I went to pray for a man who was dying. I laid hands on him with his nurse and the next day he was discharged totally healed. One man who I went to pray for pointed at the door and yelled at me to leave. He was angry and bitter at God. He died the next day. He missed it by an inch.
Are you struggling? Do you need prayer? Do you need God to move in your life? What in the world would hold you back from making a phone call to someone who knows how to pray for you?
Could it be your pride?
Do you think people don’t care?
Maybe you’ve convinced yourself prayer won’t make any difference?
Dear Saint… Please… Stop living the way Satan wants you to live. Start living Gods way. Get the prayer you need until the issue is resolved in Heaven.
I received a text message last week from a Pastor in Africa. “Pastor, I’ve been so sick for three days I couldn’t even see to send you a text message. I need your prayer!” I called him immediately and within five minutes he was healed and out of bed. He was yelling Hallelujah and so grateful to God to be released out of the Devil’s hands.
The Devil tried to kill him. Tried to blind him. But a five minute prayer broke the hold on him and he was set free.
Do you get it? Are you hearing yet? Prayer avails much but you have to want it, ask for it and expect God to move on your behalf.
I want to wrap this up by saying this… I care about your life. How much more God? You don’t need to call me. There are plenty of prayer warriors out there who walk with God. All I’m saying is call someone. To not do the basics is to say to God, “I’d rather do it my way…”
Honestly, it grieves me to watch people refuse to chase after what is their God given gift; Jesus Christ, the One who can change it all. All you have to do is want it.
With love for your life
Pastor Jeff Mauer
