FROM DISCOURAGED TO JOYFUL (3 OF 9)
by Ed Rowell
Scripture: GALATIANS 5:22
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From Discouraged to Joyful (3 of 9)
EXTREME MAKEOVER
Ed Rowell
Galatians 5:22
September 26, 2004
Galatians 5:22 (NIV) 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
Top 10 comments that make a pastor joyful
10. "You went 25 minutes over? Gee pastor...we were so moved we didn't even notice!"
9. "Since we're all here, let's just start the service early."
8. "Please! No more announcements! Let's get rid of anything in the service that takes away time from your preaching."
7. "Put out some extra chairs next Sunday. I've invited our entire neighborhood to come with us."
6. ""Could you and Susan teach a parenting class? Your kids are the most spiritual and well-behaved we've ever seen!"
5. "We need bigger offering baskets. These are too small!"
4. "We love change. We hate being in a rut."
3. "We'd like to send you to a pastor's conference in Hawaii.
2. "Just take the whole year off to write your next book."
...And the number one thing that brings joy to a pastor
1. "You remind me of Billy Graham."
The difference between happiness and joy
In his book Dangers, Toils & Snares, John Ortberg writes:
When we take our children to the shrine of the Golden Arches, they always lust for the meal that comes with a cheap little prize, a combination christened, in a moment of marketing genius, "The Happy Meal". You're not just buying fries, McNuggets, and a dinosaur stamp; you're buying happiness. Their advertisements have convinced my children they have a little McDonalds-shaped vacuum in their souls: "Our hearts are restless till they find their rest in a happy meal."
I try to buy off the kids sometimes. I tell them to order only the food and I'll give them a quarter to buy a little toy on their own. But the cry goes up, "I want a Happy Meal." All over the restaurant, people crane their necks to look at the tight-fisted, penny-pinching cheapskate of a parent who would deny a child the meal of great joy.
The ...
EXTREME MAKEOVER
Ed Rowell
Galatians 5:22
September 26, 2004
Galatians 5:22 (NIV) 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
Top 10 comments that make a pastor joyful
10. "You went 25 minutes over? Gee pastor...we were so moved we didn't even notice!"
9. "Since we're all here, let's just start the service early."
8. "Please! No more announcements! Let's get rid of anything in the service that takes away time from your preaching."
7. "Put out some extra chairs next Sunday. I've invited our entire neighborhood to come with us."
6. ""Could you and Susan teach a parenting class? Your kids are the most spiritual and well-behaved we've ever seen!"
5. "We need bigger offering baskets. These are too small!"
4. "We love change. We hate being in a rut."
3. "We'd like to send you to a pastor's conference in Hawaii.
2. "Just take the whole year off to write your next book."
...And the number one thing that brings joy to a pastor
1. "You remind me of Billy Graham."
The difference between happiness and joy
In his book Dangers, Toils & Snares, John Ortberg writes:
When we take our children to the shrine of the Golden Arches, they always lust for the meal that comes with a cheap little prize, a combination christened, in a moment of marketing genius, "The Happy Meal". You're not just buying fries, McNuggets, and a dinosaur stamp; you're buying happiness. Their advertisements have convinced my children they have a little McDonalds-shaped vacuum in their souls: "Our hearts are restless till they find their rest in a happy meal."
I try to buy off the kids sometimes. I tell them to order only the food and I'll give them a quarter to buy a little toy on their own. But the cry goes up, "I want a Happy Meal." All over the restaurant, people crane their necks to look at the tight-fisted, penny-pinching cheapskate of a parent who would deny a child the meal of great joy.
The ...
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