Reaching out

My dear friend, you are so faithful in the work you do for other Christians, even when they are strangers. They have spoken to the church here about your love. Please help them to continue their journey in a way that will please God. For they set out on their journey in the service of Christ without accepting any help from unbelievers. We Christians, then, must help these people, so that we may share in their work for the truth.   (verses 5-8)

Read 3 John 1-15

An old prayer for pastors went, ‘Lord, you keep him humble, we’ll keep him poor’. My grandfather was a minister and he was once asked, ‘Pastor, why is your horse so sleek and fat and you are such a skinny man?’ He answered, ‘That’s because I feed my horse and the parish feeds me’.

Nowadays pastors receive generous remuneration, but are churches focusing more on local ministry and less on wider ‘mission’ work?

John encourages Gaius to keep on supporting faithful itinerant preachers. ‘You may not know them, but we must help them.’ Does your church have a ministry to someone out there who will be encouraged by your financial support?

Bless those I name before you who have gone out to tell others about you, Lord. Amen.

by Paul Lohe, in ‘Assurance for each Day’ (LCA, Openbook, 2004)

Visit the Daily Devotion archives page.