A Pastoral Pondering
(From Fruitfulness to Barrenness)

The “process” that takes us from fruitfulness to barrenness moves downward in three stages -- complacency to malaise to apathy (see definitions below). There are many reasons that can cause such a downward spiral toward disengagement to begin. I want to address two which I believe are basic:

1. We lose interest and energy in maintaining the principles and precepts which were once important to us. When that starts to happen the “cares of this world” begin to choke out our fruitfulness. "The seed cast in the weeds represents the ones who hear the kingdom news but are overwhelmed with worries about all the things they have to do and all the things they want to get. The stress strangles what they heard, and nothing comes of it." (Mark 4:19 / The Message Bible)

2. Our discernment becomes dull in matters related to how we live our lives. We no longer work at “renewing our minds”. “So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God and you'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you." (Rom.12:1&2 / The Message Bible)

On a personal level my pastoral role (and that of the worship leadership) is to try and model a lifestyle that continues to be changed from the inside out. On a corporate level our role is to nurture an *internal environment of worship which can help to birth an *external atmosphere in which the Holy Ghost is free to move into and out thru the lives of those in the congregation. We are called by the Lord and anointed by the Spirit to lead saints toward a place of engagement with God through worship & praise. However, we cannot get them engaged. That can only be outworked between them and the Spirit.

*I will share more about spiritual environments & atmospheres in a future blog posting.

Complacency - Satisfaction accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers or deficiencies.

Effect: {The “status quo” lulls us into a self-satisfied inactivity}

Malaise - An indefinite feeling of debility or lack of health often indicative of or accompanying the onset of an illness. A vague sense of mental or moral ill-being.

Effect: {We begin to sense something is wrong but do little to try and figure out what it is or what to do about it}

Apathy - Lack of feeling or emotion. Lack of interest or concern.

Effect: {We become disengaged and don’t even seem to care}


So, how are we to combat such unfruitful habits & behaviors? Here's one way:

“Bless the Lord, O my soul
And all that’s within me
Bless His holy name”
(Ps.103:1)


Copyright Secured: See & Say (Songs & Such), BMI

"WHEN WE WORSHIP"

When we worship we are changed
When we come into God's presence
We will never be the same
When we worship we are changed

When we worship we are changed
Transformed into God's image
In His likeness to remain
When we worship we are changed

So let us worship Him
Lift up our hands to Him
Come let us worship Him
Cast all our cares on Him

When we worship we are changed
When we come into His presence
Though our trials may remain
When we worship we are changed

(By: W. Berry / See & Say Songs, BMI)