BAD THINGS CAN STILL HAPPEN – EVEN IF GOD IS IN IT- BY PASTOR GREG ELKAN.

_“Are they ministers of Christ? I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent...”_ –2Co 11:23

One of the many criticisms of modern carols and nativity plays is that that they tend to tell a sanitised version of the Christmas story. As someone rightly pointed out, the actual Christmas story in the Bible includes dark themes like infertility, divorce, shame, mass murder, injustice and doubt; but you’d barely be able to appreciate all that amidst the cute rhyming singalong and dim coloured lights, of modern cantatas.

Our nativity plays are cute, nice and tidy; but the real Christmas two millenia ago was anything but those.

Ministries, too, once they’ve grown and become successful, tend to _sanitise_ their stories, and conveniently leave out the dark, gruelling aspects of their story. 

This is quite unfortunate; because it paints an unrealistic picture of ministry for young ministers and aspiring pastors.

Contrary to what’s been touted about today, struggling to start a ministry is not a _clear_ sign that God’s not in it or even that God wants you to stop. When Mary and Joseph decided to embrace the work God gave to them, what followed was rejection, stigma and death – lots and lots of innocent death.

If they were like young ministers today, they’d seriously begin to doubt whether they were in the will of God. Afterall, if the virgin-born baby was truly God’s child, why do they then need to be running around? If the angel that appeared to them was really legitimate, can’t he just ward off all would-be attackers? If this was the messiah child that was known to be on the way for over a millennia, wouldn’t God have made more than scant arrangements for his physical arrival? 

Come to think of it, Mary and Joseph were basically left alone; the only people who understood their travail were either strangers, or old people. Maybe God was not in this after all.

Or maybe God is. 

Beloved, trials and attacks on the work of ministry must not be interpreted as evidence of God’s disfavour. If the attacks on the holy family as recorded in scripture is anything to go by, the setacks and stonewall faced by your ministry may just be indication that the Kingdom of Darkness are threatened by the prospect and potential of your ministry.

If all Hell seems to break loose after you answered the call to ministry, take that as yet another testimony that the Devil is scared –just as in Mat 2:16-18 – that something is about to happen through your ministry. 

AMEN

PASTOR GREG ELKAN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.