Stand Strong Series

Lee Eclov, a recently retired pastor, talks about the time an F3-magnitude tornado swept through Beaver County, Pennsylvania, just north of Pittsburg, where he pastored a small church at the time. It was around 7 p.m. on the evening of Friday, May 31, 1985. He was at church for a meeting when they got word of the storm. When the meeting came to an end, everyone headed to the home of some friends just as they had planned on doing.

Lee’s friend was a surgeon, and when they arrived at his home, one of his colleagues was already at the door. All the physicians in the area were being summoned to the medical center. Lee’s surgeon friend, Roy, ran to his car and left immediately. The rest of them stood there wondering what they could do.

Lee thought, “I'm a pastor. Maybe I should go to the Medical Center, too,”. But he did not want to go. Lee says, “I was frightened,” and he reasoned, “I'd probably be in the way. What could I possibly do? They've already got people lined up for these things.”

You see, pastors are people too with very real fears and the ability to make all kinds of excuses not to help. Lee says, “Finally, with God's sharp finger in the middle of my back, I reluctantly drove to the hospital.”

The devastation was worse than anybody imagined. Phone lines were down. Traffic was at a standstill. Kids were driving around, and their parents had no idea where they were. It turned out that the hospital was the only place where worried people could think to go. Many had been injured and three people were dead. The lady in charge of the emergency room—a woman from Lee’s church—would call out from time to time: “Is there anyone from the Jack Smith family here?” Otherwise, folks sat and worried.

Having no better idea of what to do, Lee just started walking up to clusters of people. He would say, “I'm a pastor, and I wonder if you'd like me to pray for you and your family.”

“Yes, please,” they said. “That would be great.”

No one asked Lee what church he served, and no one—not one person—even hesitated to accept his prayers. Lee says, “I think I was the only one at the hospital that evening praying for people.”

Later that night, it hit him that he is an agent of Christ’s compassion in this world. That means going where people are “harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” That’s what Christians do, not just pastors. When others retreat from heartache and sorrow, Christians step in because they walk with Jesus. (Lee Eclov, Vernon Hills, Illinois; www.PreachingToday.com)

When the storms of life come, walk with Jesus and reach out with love to others. Don’t wallow in self-pity. Instead, work with pity for others who are suffering just like you.

If you want to stand strong in the midst of your affliction, depend on one another; depend on the Lord; and demonstrate love for others.

In his book, When You Can’t Come Back, Dave Dravecky says, “In America, Christians pray for the burden of suffering to be lifted from their backs. In the rest of the world, Christians pray for stronger backs so they can bear their suffering. It's why we look away from the bag lady on the street and to the displays in store windows. Why we prefer going to the movies instead of to hospitals and nursing homes.” (Dave Dravecky, When You Can't Come Back; www.PreachingToday.com)

My dear friends, don’t ask God to remove the suffering from your back; ask God for a stronger back to bear your suffering for His glory until Jesus comes.