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MAY  2017
In This Issue
What to Tell Yourself When Things Don't Go Like You Hoped
The Unbusy Pastor.
Father's Day Dessert-Banana Split Lasagna
Running Out of Prayers
by Lysa Terkeurst

When things don't turn out like we hoped they would, we can start to feel a little disillusioned and doubtful that God has a good plan for us. That's why I'm so thankful that my friend Jennifer Rothschild is guest posting on the blog today with some helpful things we can tell ourselves when those hard moments happen.

My Assistant, Angela, came into my office crying. I immediately jumped up and hugged her and said, "Whatever it is, it will be okay. Whatever it is, you will be okay." I expected some terrible personal crisis; I was ready to be the consoling counselor.

"I need to resign; I'm going back to school."

Suddenly, I was the one with a personal crisis. I didn't want her to resign! I needed her to hug me and tell me, "Whatever it is, it will be okay."

You know how this stuff feels, right? I was happy for her but unhappy for me. I now had to deal with a heart full of disappointment.

Many disappointments we deal with feel a lot worse - I know, sister. Dreams die. Relationships end. Husbands walk away. Health fails. Teenagers make bad choices. Friends can be unkind. Parents don't act like grown-ups. Bosses aren't always fair. We're left heartbroken, confused, discouraged...

The Unbusy Pastor 
The word busy is the symptom not of commitment but of betrayal. 

by Eugene H. Peterson
( LEADERSHIP'S TOP 40 ARTICLES: #38)

The one piece of mail certain to go unread into my wastebasket is the one addressed "to the busy pastor." Not that the phrase doesn't describe me at times, but I refuse to give my attention to someone who encourages what is worst in me.

I'm not arguing the accuracy of the adjective; I am, though, contesting the way in which it is used to flatter and express sympathy. "The poor pastor," we say. "So devoted to his flock; the work is endless and he sacrifices himself so unstintingly." But the word busy is the symptom not of commitment but of betrayal. It is not devotion but defection. The adjective busy set as a modifier to pastor should sound to our ears like adulterous to characterize a wife, or embezzling to describe a banker. It is an outrageous scandal, a blasphemous affront. Hilary of Tours diagnosed pastoral busyness as "irreligiosa solicitudo pro Deo," a blasphemous anxiety to do God's work for him.

I (and most pastors, I believe) become busy for two reasons; both reasons are ignoble.

I am busy because I am vain. I want to appear important. Significant. What better way than to be busy? 

This no-bake dessert is hands down the most fun way to eat a banana split, a perfect treat for your favorite Dad.   RECIPE HERE

 What happens when we run out of faith and run into fear? 
By Jill Briscoe

Have you ever run out of prayers? I'm sure you have. Was it after failure or success? We can understand our prayer life being affected when we are in trouble, but what about it being affected by achievement?

A fter Elijah ran to Jezreel, toward victory and acclamation, God vindicated him by fire. But suddenly Elijah turns and runs in the opposite direction.

When Ahab got home, he told Jezebel that Elijah had slaughtered the prophets of Baal. So Jezebel sent this message to Elijah: "May the gods also kill me if by this time tomorrow I have failed to take your life like those whom you killed."

Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, and on alone into the desert. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. "I have had enough, Lord," he said. "Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors" (1 Kings 19:1-4).

Elijah runs away from Jezreel and into the jaws of defeat. He was just like us, human and afraid. Yes, he was afraid! (1 Kings 19:3).

This particular verse of Scripture is an amazing verse.
I could imagine the Bible saying that Elijah was exhausted or angry or lonely, but not "Elijah was afraid!" Yet, that particular verse of Scripture encourages me to keep hoping, because I, too, am often afraid.

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