Value

I hope you value this thing we do. Ultimately what makes you a preacher is that you preach. You do a billion and a half other things and sometimes we can allow ourselves to be more defined professionally by those things than the thing that actually is what we are to do by the very definition of what our title is. 

Preaching is not optional. The church did not at sometime commission a counsel and determine that preaching was the best way to communicate God’s Truths. A global poll was not conducted to decide that preaching was the way to go. It is not a congregational freedom or decision whether or not they determine to use preaching. No, this thing we do it commissioned by God Himself. “…it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe” (1 Corinthians 1:21). 

About once every 5-10 years the mentality will again rear its ugly head that we should replace the sermon with skits or puppets or drama or a thousand other things that simply are something other than preaching. And some will even try it and the church will suffer and flounder, not because our voice is important but because God’s Way is right and is what always works. 

But in the course of all of that, we can allow what we do to be undermined in our own mind. Little bits of our own conviction are chiseled away. And what we do not value we do not give attention to. And in the inattention we might devalue the priceless message we are to preach. All of this is so discouraging, disheartening, and disruptive. 

I want you to remember to value what you do. God does. Could you envision that God is thankful for you? You are doing His Will, are a small part of fulfilling His Mission, and are sharing His Message. 

And: “How shall they hear without a preacher” (Romans 10:14). Preach, it is worth it, it is valuable.