Crowd of Cares

Apart from the things which have not been mentioned, there is this: the crowd of cares pressing upon me daily, the anxious concern for all the churches. 2 Corinthians 11:28

Serving the Lord is the most blessed service in the whole universe. To be able to serve the true and living God is even the pure mercy of the Lord. In fact, no one is qualified to serve the Lord. It is God Himself who calls, trains, and qualifies His serving ones to be able to serve Him. I don't call myself as qualified in any way, but by His grace, I am indeed what I am. God showed His mercy upon me and is training me to be able to serve Him. He graces me day by day to serve Him. What a mercy, and what a blessing!

These days, the service the Lord called me for is also becoming more and more subjective and real. The burden He blessed me with is also increasing gradually. Even as He draws me with His love, the burden for shepherding His sheep also increases. Loving Him is proportionate to serving him in shepherding His sheep.

Then when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these? He said to Him, Yes, Lord, You know that I love You. He said to him, Feed My lambs. He said to him again a second time, Simon, son of John, do you love Me? He said to Him, Yes, Lord, You know that I love You. He said to him, Shepherd My sheep. He said to him the third time, Simon, son of John, do you love Me? Peter was grieved that He said to him the third time, Do you love Me? And he said to Him, Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You. Jesus said to him, Feed My sheep. John 21:15-17

The Crowd of Cares for the Saints

The saints are going through different situations. It has indeed been a joy to have more saints added into the church life. At the same, as they came in, the shepherding on them also is very crucial. The more I get to shepherd them, the more I realize I need the Lord's shepherding. Each saint has their "problems and hardships." Now that they have come into the church life, they need to be shepherded as well. I am glad  I have been graced to bear the burden of shepherding the saints. As a learning serving one, I praise the Lord for the precious lessons of life He has been teaching me in shepherding the saints. A complicated checker work in the pillar of the temple is now what I and the brothers have been experiencing. However complicated the situation may seem to be, the Lord's abundant supply of grace and life will turn the complicated checker works into a beautiful display of the abundance of life.

The Crowd of Cares for the Serving Ones

The serving ones among us also need shepherding. In the Body serving in coordination, some times, our own serving ones are going through a lot of complicated situations too. Family and financial issues are very common among the serving ones too. Such is a case that I have been facing with a serving one. The busy work schedule is another hindrance in the serving ones' enjoyment and function in the church life. This is another common "problem" to take care of. It appears as though al the working saints are going through such a situation. For this, shepherding is greatly needed. And, we brothers have been praying for this earnestly and take measure to handle the situation.

The Crowd of Cares for My Siblings and Relatives

As a brother and a family member too, I also have the burden to shepherd all my relatives. All need shepherding. I feel blessed to be burdened with my family burden too. Though prayers have been offering almost on a daily basis for my family for years altogether now, I am yet to see the full result of the Lord's answer to the prayer. I still keep praying, and as the Lord graces me I also am indirectly shepherding them over the phone. 

As a serving one, the Lord has been gracious enough to bless me with all these burdens for the saints in the church in my locality, the serving ones with whom I am in coordination with, and also my own blood relatives. Gradually, I could understand what the apostle Paul testified in his shepherding the churches: the crowd of cares pressing upon me daily, the anxious concern for all the churches.

For this, I need to spend and I am spending time with the Lord in prayer. All these burdens make prayer life sweeter and enjoyable. I could release with my burden with much feeling to the Lord and experience His prayer in my prayer. Yes, the prayers are seeming for shepherd those in need, but the prayer, first of all, benefited me the most. What a sweet time of prayer with these burdens from the Lord. Answers to these prayers already have been the experience and enjoyment of the prayer itself. Praise the Lord!

"The crowd of cares pressing upon me daily, the anxious concern for all the churches," are, to me, the blessings of shepherding. And with this crowd of cares, I have been enjoying a lot of prayer time with a good number of saints and serving ones, on a daily and weekly basis. Therefore, this crowd of cares is a blessing in disguise.