As a pastor’s wife, I wrestle with so many insecurities. In my twentieth year of fulfilling this role, I often feel less qualified for the responsibility than when I first embarked on this journey nearly two decades ago.
My mind goes back to the faces, precious faces, that have come and gone during that time. Some stayed for years, others for months, and some only for days…and I loved them all. Granted, some were easier to love than others, but in the end, my heart wrenched in agony when they left. Every. Single. Time.
Each one had issues. Relationships, health, finances, emotions, addictions, heartaches, strongholds, flesh. For the most part, I (along with my husband) was right in the middle of their situations -befriending, loving, advising, encouraging, teaching, defending, protecting, interceding. Sadly, it wasn’t enough to keep most of them.
Many have come through the church doors, and sat on its pews. They studied the Word, and prayed with us. They went on youth outings, and brought food to pitch ins. They all loved God and wanted to serve Him. They wanted to be part of the Church. They wanted to do right. They wanted to be faithful. They wanted to live holy. Yet, one by one, most went back to former lifestyles, habits and circles of influence.
Willpower isn’t enough to sustain your walk with God. Will power has its roots in the flesh, and eventually, all flesh will fail God. When I look into the faces of the precious sheep who have remained, I see the difference. Those who stayed were committed. Commitment has its roots in faith, and faith is very pleasing to God.
[bctt tweet=”Willpower has its roots in the flesh, and eventually, all flesh will fail God.”]
[bctt tweet=”Commitment has its roots in faith, and faith is very pleasing to God.”]
Committed sheep are faithful. Faithful sheep are consistent. Consistent sheep are hungry. Hungry sheep are filled. Filled sheep are growing. Growing sheep are maturing. Mature sheep reproduce more sheep. This is the strength of the flock, as well as the strength of each individual.
A person who is committed will stand the test of time, with all of its trials, heartaches, frustrations, and disappointments. No matter what comes their way, they will be found sitting on the pew decades later, with a praise on their lips. Why? Because they made a decision years earlier based on commitment, not emotions or circumstances. In comparison, a person who only wants to live for God based on emotion, and not commitment, is likely to turn back as soon as he is faced with any temptation or offense.
There is often an unsaid expectation when people come to the Lord. Many assume that making the decision to live for God will solve all of their problems, and fix all of their issues. Trials, temptations and heartaches come to everyone, whether they are living for God or not. People are people, both inside and outside of the Church, with all of their various personalities and quirks. Life happens to every individual, born again, or not.
Running from God and His people is not the answer in difficult times. Sheep need the Good Shepherd. Sheep need other sheep. The enemy will lure weak individuals away from the flock by telling them that they have their own personal relationship with the Shepherd, so they can serve Him anywhere by themselves. Multitudes have fallen for this lie, and been picked off one by one, at the enemy’s discretion. God’s design for His sheep is for them to abide in the flock, and to rest securely in the sheepfold.
If you are a committed sheep, I applaud you. You are a strength and encouragement to your Pastor, Pastor’s Wife and the flock. If you are a sheep serving God out of emotion, I urge you to dig deep into your innermost being, and make the decision now, before hard times come, to live for God within the parameters of the flock and sheepfold He has chosen for you. If you are a sheep wandering aimlessly on your own, I beg you, come back and abide in the flock. The enemy of your soul is lurking just out of sight. The security of the sheepfold awaits. The Shepherd is calling, and the sheep will be happy to have you home.
Warm Regards,
-Pat
Photo Credit: 
“Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”
As we approached for landing on the main island of Tongatapu, two things made an impression on us concerning Tonga and her people. From the air we saw her magnificent blowholes. It seemed to us that no one could live alongside such beauty and not be deeply affected in their souls by its splendor. We also saw her patchwork of dark, volcanic farmland. Considering their 2016 General Conference theme was to be, “FLASHPOINT: Having a Mind to Work,” those rich, fertile furrows assured us that these people were definitely no strangers to hard work.
The Tongan people are very hospitable. We were honored with a Welcome Feast when we arrived at the UPCI Headquarters Church and Bible School. The team was overwhelmed and humbled by platter after platter mounded with food that they had sacrificed to prepare.
Services didn’t begin until Thursday evening, allowing us a few days to see the sights and get our bearings. A van had been rented, enabling our group to travel together. It was during this time that we first visited Tonga’s acclaimed blowholes at low tide. Here, ocean waves crashed into porous channels of volcanic rock, and blew skyward for twenty to thirty feet, in a great symphony of spray and sound. We were also able to drive through the countryside, taking in the sights, sounds and culture of these wonderful people.
Even though they have little in the way of money or material possessions, they utilize every natural resource to enrich their lives. One example of this is their beautiful Tapa Cloth, which they make by pressing the bark of trees into paper-like sheets and decorating them with dye made from local berries. These are coveted pieces of artwork that are given as gifts in friendship and are also essential to the foundation of Tonga’s tourism. Missionary Crystal Reece said it best, “Tongans think they are so poor, but they are really so rich, and have so much to offer.”
Once the conference started on Thursday evening, sightseeing was put to the side, and pressing into the Spirit became our focus. Bro. Showalter was the day speaker. With each session he laid a solid foundation of Apostolic teaching on the New Birth. Bro. Vick was the night speaker, focusing on moving forward into new levels of faith and commitment. Sis. Showalter and Sis. Vick ministered in the ladies’ service on Saturday. The Lord had prepared each speaker with messages that built upon the conference theme, “FLASHPOINT: Having a Mind to Work.”
From the first song in the kick off service, it was apparent that the Tongan Church loves to worship. They are a naturally joyful people. This was manifested again and again, whether it was through their colorful clothing, the smiles on their faces, their beautiful voices as they harmonized in song, or their eagerness to dance with zeal in praise and worship. Since modesty is a cultural norm in Tonga, their long, fully-covered style of clothing allowed freedom in worship. The atmosphere compelled each of us to join in with exuberance.
Each message had to be translated from English to Tongan. Bro. Showalter was overjoyed that his translator was the same man who had translated for him fifteen years before as a young man. What a joy to know he was still thriving in the Church and in ministry.
The structure of the conference was the same as one would expect at our North American General Conference. This is important to note because the United Pentecostal Church work in Tonga is only forty-five years young. We were blessed to meet eighty year old, Sis. Ofa Manu. She, along with her late husband, were the first UPCI converts in 1971 by Missionary Don Dobyns.
Because of the strong structural foundation that was laid over the last forty-five years, there is a strong Bible School presence in Tonga today. We witnessed three new Bible School students graduate and be presented at this year’s conference. Sis. Crystal has worked tirelessly over the past three years in the Bible School on her first appointment, as well as several years previously in the Associates In Missions program under the leadership of former Pacific Regional Director, Bennie Blunt.
That evening, we were privileged to witness as Pacific Regional Director, Bro. Roger Buckland gave the charge to a minister and his wife receiving his Ordination License.
The 2016 Tongan General Conference concluded Sunday night with twenty-two people having been filled with the Holy Ghost. That final worship service was phenomenal as the people praised God for all they had seen and experienced. After all, it had to be enough to carry them back across the sea until the next time they could gather with their brothers and sisters in the Lord.
Monday came all too soon with the team members heading in different directions, some preparing to go home and others traveling on to scheduled conferences. The week had been so full that we hardly had the time to wonder how we would feel when the conference came to an end. Old friendships were rekindled. New friendships were forged. In both old and new, hearts were united for the cause of Missions.
