In September, an e-mail invitation came from Rick Duncan, pastor at Cuyahoga Valley Church, to a group of pastors from the area inviting us to gather to pray together for an hour and invite other pastors. I was pleasingly surprised at the good turn-out and the joy that praying together brought. The group decided to meet monthly for an hour of prayer. When I think of the significance of this - unity among ministry leaders calling on the name of the Lord together -- it overwhelms my expectations.
At the most recent gathering, Rick prayed something like this... "Lord, remind us PRAYER is not PREPARATION for ministry. Prayer IS the ministry." I've been chewing on that all week.
This week I listened to the podcasts of Stan Tharp and Dave Thomas, pastors of two of the strongest Assembly of God Churches in Ohio, addressing the topic Lessons I've Learned Along the Journey from the FORUM (available at http://www.ohioag.org/). The over riding theme they both shared is that pastors and ministry leaders must get into the presence of God and hear from God for themselves, resisting the temptation to copy others and compare ourselves among ourselves. This week I've set aside time on my calendar this week to do just that... BE WITH JESUS. (Isaiah 30:18, Isaiah 64:4, Matthew 11:28-30)
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