“Take Heed Unto Thyself”

As a young believer (all those many decades ago!), one of my favorite quotes was from the famous missionary William Carey who said that we should, 'Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God.'

That’s how I wanted to live my life. I wanted to be someone who is not afraid to take bold risks for God because I knew God is big, and I had seen Him do awesome things in my life and in the lives of others. I knew that serving Him would be the adventure of a lifetime.

Three men were my early mentors—and have probably had more influence on my life and ministry that any others. Roy Lange taught me to study and live the Bible, patiently instilling the principles of right division and the grace life into my understanding. His gracious example of faithfulness has kept me going more times than anyone could ever know. Jim Isbill taught me to be soul-conscious. He was the most soul-minded person I ever knew until I met Oscar Woodall, who was perhaps his equal, but it was “uncle Jim” that put the issue of the clarity of the gospel into my heart in an indelible way. Then there was Clyde Reynolds who taught me to take what he called “the dare of faith.”

I really started preaching at the Mobile Rescue Mission under the watchful eye of its superintendent, Brother Reynolds. Along the way he gave me five pledges that he conducted his ministry by. I adopted them for myself, promising God that:

1. No one will meddle with my preaching;
2. I will make my decisions on the basis of right and wrong, not on the basis of expediency;
3. I will be loyal to principles and not institutions, unless they embrace those principles;
4. I will always be a friend to my friends;
5. Money will never be an issue in my ministry.

Every January since those early days I have done several things: For example, I reread C.R.Stam’s book, The Controversy. I do this to refocus my mind on the importance of the distinctive ministry and message committed to our trust through the Apostle Paul. I also review the past year and prioritize goals for the new one. During this exercise I “take heed unto thyself” (I Tim. 4:16) by examining how well I have followed these guidelines—repenting where I have failed to do so and recommitting myself to them for the future.

Taking “the dare of faith” is too important to not “give attendance” to these details. No matter how carefully we “take heed unto …the doctrine,” Paul put “thyself” first—and he did so for an obvious reason!

I confess I am passionate about our local church, about our various outreach ministries through Grace Impact Ministries, about our training program embodied in Grace School of the Bible. This is because we want to help people join in on the great adventure of living boldly for God and to guide them toward experiencing the new hope and fullness of life that is in the Lord Jesus Christ.

"Take heed to thyself" and make sure you are on the path of "the dare of faith!"

Maranatha!