Water or Sponge What are You?

Years ago my older brother told me before he moved out of town to direct a Christian Men's home in Stockton, that as a new convert the most important thing that I must do was to get under my Pastor and learn as much as I can from him. Because I was a new convert this concept wasn’t entirely clear to me, so I took what he told me and fed off my Pastor’s anointing. I was like a leach, every time I spent the day with my Pastor I left him feeling tired and empty. And even though that was the case he never sent me away without feeding my eager mind and heart. Slowly it began to be revealed to me that I was a spiritual glutton, all this time I was taking and taking and never giving anything in return, and you know, he never asked either. How many hours of prayer did this man spend on his knees to replenish the spirit that I absorbed from him each and every day like a dry sponge? I mean every day for hours I would be there asking and needing and never giving back. Then one day at church I saw the tiredness in my Pastor’s eyes and his willingness to go on as if he was well rested. It was then that the Lord spoke to my heart and showed me what a true disciple was. He isn’t a taker, his call isn’t to weaken his Pastor, God did not place this man in my life so I can sap him of his energy and strength, He placed me in his life so that I can serve him and lend him my strength. We would talk into the late hours of the night, pray in the morning and still conduct kingdom business in a growing and struggling church. It was my obligation to God to be a bearer of this man’s burdens so he can bear the burdens of the church. Please do not misunderstand this post to be one that preaches bondage, or legalism, cultism or any other kind of ism. This man was an example not a slave owner. Again he didn’t need to ask, God asked me for him. The time would come that I would still be at his house until late, still show up at 5 or 6 in the morning to go to the church to pray, I would still keep him after church or any other meeting to learn from him. But now instead of all of our time together being spent giving to me I spent a lot of that time giving to him. I would show up and wash his car, clean his yard, cook for his family, sweep his garage, (which incidentally was also his office so there was many chances to hear his sermons before he preached them), and it wasn’t until our relationship became a mutual partnership of give and take that I really started to learn what a true disciple was. He is a servant, not only to God but also to man, especially the man of God. I learned so much from this Pastor and other Pastors that I would have the pleasure of knowing, not because I came around and just took and took, but because I came around to serve and carry and they gave in return. Never forget church, your Pastor loves you. He could not do what he does if he didn't, love him in return