FAITHFULNESS

As I sat at Mrs. Persson’s memorial service on Friday, I was hearing her described as a woman of great faith who served our faithful God. As I saw and heard stories of these elderly faithful brothers and sisters in Christ I began to think about their value to the Church, the Body of Christ. Several years ago I remember hearing people talking about how our World War II veterans were dying off and the impact it was having on our nation. The United States is suffering from the departure of these great men and women who served their nation with courage and determination.

And then I thought about the Church, your church, my church, all the churches across America. What impact is the passing of these dear faithful men and women of God having on our churches and the Body of Christ as a whole? I will not take the time to go into great detail but simply say that I think the impact is immeasurable. Sadder yet is the fact that most do not even seem to care to contemplate their worth. And maybe even more concerning are the rising number of professing believers who see the sort of lives that these dear saints have lived as one of the Churches problems. Today they call them old fashioned. They call them traditional and out of touch with where the Lord is leading the Church in ministry today. I think not. I call them Jesus loving, Bible believing, hymn singing, gospel preaching and righteous living faithful children of God. I call them extremely valuable assets to the Body of Christ. I call them heroes of the faith. Regretfully, I fear their number is getting smaller. The Church is and will continue to be negatively impacted by their departure if they are not replaced.

During the memorial service Pastor Jerry quoted some words from the song “Find Us Faithful” that say “Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful, may the fire of our devotion light their way.” He rightly pointed to Jesus as the one to fix our eyes on, the one who is the Light and the Way. God desires to use His children in His work in the lives of people and so this song speaks of a worthy desire for the believer to have. A sobering question is this. Will believers even consider the faithful lives of those who have gone before them as a worthy example to follow? I pray that they do. We must make sure they do.

Heavenly Father, we thank you for the men and women who have fought the good fight of faith and have finished the course. We thank you for those who are doing so now. Lord, we have such a great need to consider this matter, help us to understand the importance of faithfulness and to have a deep appreciation for those who have lived it. Thank you for Your faithfulness!

Greg Engebretson