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Rich Churches
Brother Ritechus N Dignation
I'm fired up! Yep, I'm mad as hornets. I just heard about a church thats got money run'nin out their ears. They got money in the bank draw'in inurst. And it ain't even a big city church.
What do you think the Lord's gonna say when He comes back? "Well done thou good and saving church. I been runnin a little short on cash lately. Thanks for sav'in all this up for me."
If I remember the great commission right, it's all about sav'in souls, not money. It's about teach'in His unsearchable riches, not hoarding up earthly riches. You know what the problem usually is? It starts when you get a bunch of backslidden Baptists running things, who have forgotten that the churches money is actually the Lords money, not theirs personally. The Lords money is to be used for the Lords work, not saved for a rainy day.....or the tribulation.
These backsliders forgot that when they put their money in the plate, it ceased being theirs(actually, it was already Gods before they even put it in the plate). They try to reclaim ownership and then begin pinching pennies until Lincoln starts to holler.
I bet if you checked the bank statements of just 15 rural churches, you'd find that all together they've got from one half to a million dollars stockpiled in bank accounts. Now I can understand keep'in some money on hand in case one of the refrigerated air conditioning machines breaks. But tarnation, you don't need a kings ransom for that. How much cold air do you want?
Im fired up, because with all that money, there's a lot more Bibles could be bought, a lot more Christian education done, a heap more folks helped in the name of Jesus, and more missionaries supported. They just won't get up off it.
Same thing could be said with some associations. Quit sitt'in on the Lords money! You're buryin it like that guy buried the talents and if you will remember, he wasn't too happy when his lord returned.
RND Unknown Gem Type: tlx.tlx.tellyourfriends
Holy Real Estate
Brother Ritechus N. Dignation
Seems like some churches today are more interested in temporal things rather than the eternal. A lot of time, money, effort and fuss'in goes into land and buildings, particularly parsonages. The church parsonage, which was seldom heard of in the old days, has become a sacred cow of today, with a lot of churches, but is now a dinosaur, in my humble opinion.
Some churches have wised up and now give a housing allowance to their pastor so he can rent or buy his own piece of dirt and boards. Carnal church members are opposed to such foolishness, because in their words, "Well, nobody gives me a housing allowance to buy my house. I have to work to come up with the money." Well, if they just traded pants with their pastor for one month, they would think differently when they realized he carries a bigger work load than them, through the stress and burden of being on call 24 hours a day, not to mention visiting 'til he drops and putting out fires while tryin to stay spiritual, prayed up and studied up for next weeks sermons.
Time and again, I've seen my brethren in their old age have nowhere to go, after giving their life to the Lord's work, living a lifetime in a company house called the parsonage. It might be a different story if churches paid enough for them to squirrel away some money to buy a house, but ministry income usually provides just enough for the here and now, not the future.
Ask the preachers wife how she feels. Somehow, you can never feel at home when the home belongs to everybody else. When you have to get a church vote to drive a nail or change the color of paint on a wall, somehow, a sense of belonging just ain't there. If a church does give up the parsonage and pay the preacher enough to buy a home, they give up some leverage of authority over him. You see, if they vote him out, he doesn't have to move out of their house, cause he's got his own. I suspect the power people in the church would oppose a housing allowance for this reason, as well as the old "Our pastor has always lived in the parsonage" plea.
Somehow, folks get the idea that the parsonage preacher is gett'in rich, since he doesn't pay rent, or utilities. Believe me, from what Ive seen, there's never much danger of the average preacher turn'in a big profit on ministry pay alone. If anything, he may have to turn to the dirty "S" word and supplement his income. I hope some churches will open their eyes, kill the real estate sacred cow, provide for the man of God and get on with the Lord's business. And thank the Lord for those churches that already do.
Brother Ritechus N. Dignation
Flighty Preachers
By Brother Ritechus N Dignation
Now what I'm about to say might make some folks mad, but only the ones who are guilty. My Grampa used to say, If you throw a rock into a pack of dogs at night, the one that yelps is the one that got hit. So be careful if you yelp. You just might give yourself away.
I ain't never seen the beat as the number of preachers recently that change churches at the drop of a hat. Why, they don't even get moved in good before it's time to rent another U-Haul. I heard of one preacher that didn't even stay long enough at one church to get mail. They always feel led to go to another church every year or two. Apparently, God sure does change His mind a lot. Now I'm not say'in a man can't have a short ministry on certain church fields, but Tarnation, 10 churches in 12 years don't look impressive on the resumay.
I watched a program one time on TV that gave a top 10 list of reasons why people sell houses and move often. Well, here's my list for every pulpit committee, of the top 7 tip offs that your new pastor may not be stay'in with you long enough to catch a cold.
Seven Ways to Know Your New Pastor May Not Be Staying Very Long
1. His second vehicle is a U-Haul truck.
2. His graduating seminary class voted him Most Mobile.
3. His picture is in the world book of records for pastoring in the most states, and you're number 49.
4. He has more road maps than sermons in his sermon file.
5. His nickname in the local Baptist association is Hot Wheels.
6. He keeps an open account with U-Haul.
7. When he moves on the field, all he brings is a motor home.
Anybody can accept a church, but not all have the wherewithal it takes, to stay in times of adversity, discouragement and dry spells. Hang in there, preacher. Do all you can, depend on God, and He'll see you through. Why, you might even make it into your third year.
Brother Ritechus N. Dignation
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