A
daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and
exhortation.
Wednesday,
February
5,
2020
"Worthy
Of Honor"
Message summary: As we look back over some 45 years of serving Christ we find great blessing in reflecting upon God's chosen people who are worthy of honor. We have had them all though our ministry in churches we have pastored and in churches we have attended. Today we honor Veda Shibilo. Listen to this message on your audio player. "Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor" (Romans 13:7). Today let us consider those who are worthy of honor. In our fame-crazed culture honor is often focused on the famous; entertainers, athletes, politicians and others in the limelight. Even in the church world focus is generally directed at those who have well-known ministries. Now to be sure some famous people are worthy of honor but in our view so many are not, at least when primarily defining "worthy of honor" to those living a life honoring to Jesus Christ. Those whom we believe are most worthy of honor are serving on the frontlines of Christian ministry in local churches all over the world. We greatly appreciate pastors, church leaders and others involved in Christian service. We are grateful for those who have dramatic testimonies of great deliverance from sin. But the backbone of our churches and in our daily lives are people like Veda Shibilo. Have you ever heard of her? For most the answer would be "no". But in this message while honoring Veda we want you to consider people like her in your own church and community. You know people like her and perhaps you might even blush to realize you may be numbered among them by your fellow brothers and sisters! We sure hope so. Veda
was a vital part of the church we served in New
England in the 90's. She and her late husband Bill
were among those who helped unload our U-Haul
truck when we moved into the church parsonage in
1993. She had recently retired from a professional
job and became my secretary for the nearly
eight years that I served as pastor of that
church. She had been a part of that church her
whole life and the earliest record I found of her
Christian service in that church was as a teenager
in the mid-1940's when she worked with the
children. Through the years she has blessed that
church in many capacities such as Sunday School
teacher, choir director and in many other roles.
Shortly before her move to the nursing home she
was still serving (some 75 years later) by
restocking the offering envelopes in the church
pew slots!
Last
week Ester and I visited her as she is now in a
nursing home. Her son, Greg, is her main caregiver
now and is doing an outstanding job of practicing
the Fifth Commandment. We
attended the church service and heard expressions
of esteem for her.
But we saw further evidence of her impact when we received an email from Nigel and Laifong. This couple attended the church for only a couple years and eventually relocated to the Boston area, but when Laifong read our note about Veda, she wanted to get in touch with her. She wanted to send some photos she had taken of Bill and Veda. Don't you know that really touched Veda's heart. Another couple from the New Bedford area, Rick and Liz, who were a part of our congregation but had changed churches many years ago also responded to the news about Veda by paying her a personal visit. Perhaps
you've learned recently about a brother or sister
whose declining health has forced them into a
nursing facility or they're now under the care of
a close relative. Make some time in your schedule
to pay them a visit and uplift their day!
I
concluded Ester's and my visit with Veda last week
by saying a prayer. Following my prayer for her
she also prayed for me. That meant a lot.
Today
consider people whom you need to honor. And a final challenge: Are you living
a life "worthy of honor"?
Be
encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily
prayer: Father, we're grateful for those You
raise up to be servants in Your kingdom as
instruments of blessing to others in the body
of Christ. They not only serve as an example
for us to follow, but they're also an
encouragement when we might otherwise lose
hope. They often challenge us to walk
circumspectly in the ways of the Lord, either
by their quiet example, or by biblical truths
they speak into our lives. We ask You to bless
and encourage those whom you appointed to be
Your servants for the furtherance of the
Gospel and for the purpose of building up the
body of Christ. Amen.
This
photo in the foreground shows Bill Shibilo with
Ester shortly after we moved to the parsonage in
1994. In the late spring, while Veda was at work in
the office, Bill would take his shovel and break up
the dormant ground near our parsonage, preparing the
soil for our planting of a small garden. Two weeks
ago we tried to recreate the photo with Bill and
Veda's son, Greg, standing in place of Bill,
although we couldn't find a shovel! Many years ago I
shared a message about Bill Shibilo titled "A TRIBUTE TO A FRIEND".
Brooksyne's
note: As we mentioned last week I
stayed home when Stephen and Ester visited
New England due to our elderly dog, Roxie,
who needs extra care and attention at this
time. I hated to miss the
opportunity to see her as I have a great
deal of love and respect for Veda and her
son, Greg. Ester has a special love for
them as well since she often stayed with
them when we attended conferences and
looked up to them as grandparent figures.
The most treasured gift that Veda ever
gave to us was her voluntary commitment to
pray for Ester every day. She is a
faithful prayer warrior and she told me on
more than one occasion that she prayed for
Ester right along with her own two
grandchildren every single day. She even
prayed for her after our departure from
Taunton in 2001. It meant a great deal
then and is precious to my heart even
today!
Stephen's
note: Bill and
Veda and their son Greg demonstrate
another quality that is very
commendable. When I assumed the
pastorate of that church in the early
nineties I followed a pastor who had
retired after 22 years of service. The
church understandably reflected the
style of his generation. In regard to
musical style it was an organ with a
song leader and mostly hymns sung from
the hymnal.
We
made changes reflecting more
contemporary styles with a praise
team, other instruments and also
singing choruses (at that time using
an overhead projector). However we
still sang hymns!
In
our recent visit as would be expected
after twenty years the church has a
considerably different worship style
with even more instruments a larger
praise team and two sets of drums with
words being projected using
PowerPoint. We noticed the hymnals had
been completely removed.
It
was probably somewhat hard for the
Shibilos (like many in their
generation) to see these changes
during my tenure and since but they
kept a sweet spirit and rejoiced that
Christ was still being honored and
uplifted. I was also pleased to see
that the current pastor and
congregation loved and honored the
elderly like Veda, something we see
lacking with some pastors and
churches.
Today's
Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
"Finish
Well" Video West Coast Baptist
College
"What
You Leave Behind" Video The Talleys
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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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