Take Action

There are times when one has to take definite action; mere talk is useless in many cases. For long I have been very gracious in taking care my two Onesimus'. Sometimes, handling certain brothers are not easy as they tend to take things for granted under the umbrella of "brotherhood." This is what bothers me most while caring for some brothers. I do regard their respect and honor, but at certain point I had to fire a salvo at them to teach them some spiritual lesson of life.

One of the brothers who has been staying with our family had created some nuisances because of the personal crisis he had been through recently. With insomnia and hyper-character, I discerned it best for him and our family to let him have his own accommodation elsewhere. Though I had fellowshipped with him about this decision, he seemed to overlooked the matter as being a brother. But things did not seem to improve, and was heading toward unwanted intrusion into the members of the family's life. That's when I took action and called it quit for him. Though painful as a brother, but for his own good and the good of the family, I needed to take action. And I did this after fellowshipping with another brother in the church and with all my family members. Time for action indeed.

Finally, after this action he struggled for few days and called me thrice requesting for a revocation of my decision of letting him go. But I felt it best for him to stay alone and aloof for sometime. But I welcomed him to join us for morning revival every morning and to be regular in his service. A week later, he could accept the decision and now he is back to his normal life.

Similar incident happened with another brother, and I did the same thing, calling it quit for him as a disciplinary action to his misconduct. After few days, he requested for fellowship when he openly confessed his misdeeds and begged for one more opportunity to continue in his service. With prayer I encouraged him to trust the Lord and enjoy His grace to overcome anything that frustrates his enjoyment of the Lord. Now, he is back again to his normal service.

There are times when definite disciplinary actions have to be taken. Such action is purely out of love and concern for the good the person concerned. I do believe such actions are needed according to the nature and condition of the people I am dealing with. Besides, this is also how the Lord trains me to be responsible for my service, in caring for the saints and also in discharging my official duties.

Take action when needed, even disciplinary action, in love.