JUST RIGHT FOR THE JOB
Spoken on 27 April 2008
at Shiloh Baptist Church
Waukegan, Illinois
In Honor of
Pastor Walstone E. Francis
16th Year Anniversary
Pastor Johnson, fellow Ministers, Shiloh Family, I also stand this morning with the monumental task of providing Words of Encouragement to a man that I have come to respect and admire, a man that I am glad, in the humblest sense of the Word to call my Pastor.
To Sister Francis ... anybody worth their salt will realize that there would be no him without you. Truth of the matter – heap seek but few know what it takes to be a minister’s wife. It takes a special kind of women to be married to a preacher. Thank you for being an example to Wanda, to these other ministers wives and to the women of Shiloh Baptist Church.
From the beginning, God has called men like Walstone Francis to serve His People.
For God,
•Abraham left his homeland.
•Moses declined Egypt and its riches.
•Joshua destroyed Jericho.
•Elijah confronted King Ahab.
•Daniel faced the lions.
•James and John forsook their nets.
•Matthew left his customs booths.
•Paul left a life of power and prestige.
And ... in 1971, Pastor Francis gave up the golden sand beaches, warm weather and the sunshine of the Bahamas and came to these United States to prepare himself for the call that God had placed on his life.
Now that may pale in comparison James, John, and Paul, but I am sure that there is one or two of you who would agree with me and say... I am glad that he did.
Truth of the matter ... in this day and time, we need more men like Pastor Francis. Tall timbers that are willing to stand true to God’s Word, and truly Pastor, Teacher, Dr. Walstone E. Francis’ record speaks for itself.
Well ... Pastor Francis, as you know I do not even do Alter Calls without taking a text.
I don’t know if this is out of order are not but in order for me to do a good job with this – I feel it necessary for me -- to be me; and be allowed to look to the scriptures for some help so support what I am about to say.
Help me Paul... In Philippians 2:19-22 we find these words...
(v.19) But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timotheus shortly unto you, that I also may be of good comfort, when I know your state.
(v.20) For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state.
(v.21) For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s.
(v.22) But ye know the proof of him, that, as a son with the father, he hath served with me in the gospel.
Pastor and Sister Francis ... I want to holla at you for a few minutes and encourage your heart from the following perspective
JUST RIGHT FOR THE JOB
Brother and Sister we live in a day where the word tolerance is being used and abused. We are constantly being asked to lower our standards and expectations ... and to accept any old kind of behavior and any old body.
However, I am a firm believer that we need to pick some folks -- that is just right for the job.
Don’t believe me ... watch this, if you ever been sick, with pain running through your body and you were looking for a physician ... any old doctor won’t do.
Nawl, nawl, you want a first class physician; you want somebody that is just right for the job.
How about this ... anybody ever had car trouble. Oh, but if you can ever find the mechanic that is just right for the job?
I’m a firm believer that -- it can be counted as a blessing when you can find someone that is just right.
Well, this is the attitude that the Apostle Paul is having here in this text...
You see Paul ... needed a leader and just any old body ... would not do.
Paul needed somebody that he could send back to check on the church at Phillpi. So, Paul is saying I am looking for somebody that is just right for the job.
Why is this important ... you see the Philippian Church was a special church to the Apostle Paul. When no body stood by Paul, they stood there. When nobody else tried to help, they sent help. When nobody else was there to pat him on the back, they sent a love offering.
So in essence, Paul is saying this particular church that I planted is near and dear to my heart, and I can’t just send any old body ... I am looking for somebody ... that is just right for the job.
Now ... I need you to understand that Paul did not haphazardly select someone. In Philippians 2:20 he says “For I have no man likeminded”
Those of you familiar with the story know that there was certainly hundreds of Christians in Rome. In fact, Paul greets twenty-six of them by name in Romans 16; yet not one of them was available to make the trip!
Paul is saying ... I searched and I cannot find anybody that is just like me, no body that really cares for you -–except for this one young fellow by the name of Timothy.
So Paul says in his letter to the church at Philippi get ready because I am sending him to you ... because he is just right for the job.
Well what is it that makes Timothy...
Just right for the job
Let me just share with you real quickly and I will let you go, first of all ... Timothy was Christ centered.
It is right here in Philippians 2:21... Paul said for all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s.
Paul is saying here that when I looked at the other preachers ... yes, they were preaching but it seems to me like they had a little vainglory in them.
Oh, they were doing a whole lot of whooping... and saying a whole lot of nothing. But when I look at Timothy, he is Christ centered.
In other words,
•his agenda was not position,
•his aim was not prosperity,
•his ambition was not popularity
Hint, hint doesn’t these attributes sound like somebody you know.
Well ... we talked about Timothy and used him as our example ... and all of that begs the questions ... What is it ... that makes a Walstone E. Francis just right
Let me tell you why I think Pastor Francis is just right for the job
Many of you know that my family and I where without a church home for quite some time.
I guess you can say that we where sheep without P-a-s-t-u-r-e.
As we continued to pray and ask God to lead us to a new church home, the Lord revealed to me something that I will never forget, that is:
... There and many churches, but there are few Pastors (repeat).
Therefore, my prayer shifted from Lord Lead us to a church to Lord Lead us to a Pastor.
You see ... the Lord showed me that you could join any church. People church hop all the time. They will get mad leave one church for the next in a hot second.
But the Lord said I got some bigger plans for you ... you need a Pastor that I am going to appointed to
•help guide you,
•teach you,
•encourage you,
•pray for you,
•and equip you,
•so that you can do the things that, I called you to do.
You see ... The Lord helped me to realize that I needed a Pastor...
Churches are many ... Pastors are few
I do not know if it was a revelation or unction – but whatever it was / and is ... it that helped me... I am so glad today that I listened and obeyed.
You see ... as a young man in the ministry I had to ask myself where would Joshua be without Moses; where would Timothy be without Paul; where would the disciples be without Jesus ... here I was trying to do a might work without direction ... without a spiritual leader.
Churches are many ... pastors are few
So what does that mean? It means that ... finding a church home became secondary, finding a Pastor became primary.
You looked puzzled – allow me to explain, you see finding the right Pastor
(P-A-S-T-O-R) that God has assigned you, means that you will automatically be in the right Pasture (P-A-S-T-U-R-E) THE RIGHT CHURCH ... let me say it again.
This is what I call simple math
Right Pastor = right Church. No fractions, no subtraction, no division needed. Only simply math: Right Pastor = Right Church
I am so glad today that we are not only members of the right church/pasture (Shiloh Baptist Church) ... but we also have the right PASTOR (Dr. Walstone E. Walstone)
A Pastor that truly cares about our well-being and someone whose
•his agenda was not position,
•his aim was not prosperity,
•his ambition was not popularity
What are you saying preacher...
Well, here comes the bow and the knot – let me tie all of this together.
You see... some 16 years ago, there was a Pastor vacancy at the Shiloh Baptist Church in Waukegan, Illinois and any old preacher would not do.
You see ... some 16 years ago, God said, I got a Pastor position vacant and I need somebody that is just right for the job.
I need to let somebody know that putting in an application for this particular position is fine; go ahead submit your resume. But God says – no matter how many resume you get, I’m still in ultimate control and I have already decided – I got somebody that is just right for the job.
Search committees are okay ... go ahead look for somebody in the Chicago Land Area.
Go ahead and search for a qualified candidate throughout the State of Illinois.
Go ahead, go ahead, go ahead ... cast your nets, but your search is going to come up empty. You know why...
Because ... some 55 years ago. God said I got somebody that is just right for the job.
•Somebody that I birth and brought into this world in January of 1953
•This little baby boy is just right for the job
•He does not know it yet because he is still an infant, but some 21 years later, I am going to call him to the United States of American so that he can start preparing himself to fulfill my purpose.
•You see -- he does not realize it yet but some 21 years after he comes to the states, I am going to call him up north to fill one of my key Pastor vacancies.
•The search committee thought that they had called him on January 8, 1992, but God said, I already called him in May of 1952 when he formed him in Dr. Marjorie Francis womb.(9 months prior to his birth)
•Truth of the matter is ... that before thee was a telephone God had already called him.
•Before there was a search committee God had already shaped him and equipped him. Before there was even a vacancy, God had already installed him.
God said I got a man that is Just Right for the Job.
•Somebody like Timothy who is willing to serve even if you don’t call his name
•Somebody like Timothy, who was from another city, from another state, yes, even from another country – that is just right for the job
•Somebody that is not doing it for a pat on the back
•Somebody that is not doing it for themselves
•Somebody that is not doing it for his own glory
•Somebody that is not doing to fatten his own pockets
•But ... somebody who is doing it to glorify Jesus Christ
Pastor Francis we thank God for you
•Thank you for your humility
•Thank you for your meekness
•Thank you for standing on the wall ... and for watching over our souls
For you are truly
JUST RIGHT FOR THE JOB!
May God bless you and keep you ...
May HE lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
YOU ARE ... JUST RIGHT FOR THE JOB!!!
