Articles
Climbing out of Recession
Climbing Out of Recession
By Al Diestelkamp
The economic recession our nation is experiencing did not come about overnight. There were signs of its approach for some time before it was realized. While the recession has had an impact on our whole nation (and beyond), there are some areas of the country that have fared better than others.
In a similar way, there may be evidence of “spiritual recession” that is affecting the body of Christ. Just as signs of economic decline were generally ignored, many of us ignore the signs of spiritual decline until the damage is done.
Prolonged spiritual immaturity should serve as a warning to us that something is wrong. This malady often results in strife (I Cor. 3:1-3), and always produces a scarcity of adequate teachers (Heb. 5:12-14), and congregations that can only be described as “lacking” (Tit. 1:5).
Another signal of spiritual recession is apathy toward the local work. The most obvious evidence of this is reflected in sporadic attendance by members, despite the oft-quoted warning found in Hebrews 10:25. Apathy may be the reason that our giving appears to be inconsistent with our prosperity (I Cor. 16:2).
Diminished involvement in the work and worship is another symptom of spiritual recession. It can be identified by obvious lack of preparation for Bible classes, missing enthusiasm during worship or by misplaced priorities. Planned congregational events (i.e. gospel meetings, singings, etc.) are treated as “optional.”
Sometimes there is a lack of personal involvement with one another. Hospitality and good deeds are left to others, and cluttered lives have caused some to be “too busy” to interact outside of the meeting place.
While our primary obligation is to the local church, it seems that there has been a marked decline in brethren showing support for the work of other congregations. I am not referring to financial support for gospel preachers in other locations, but in lending encouragement to neighboring congregations in their evangelistic and edification efforts.
Our national leaders of both political parties decided that the answer to our economic woes would be to implement a “stimulus package.” Whether that effort will eventually work may be up for debate, but regarding spiritual matters there is no doubt that we need to be stimulated to climb out of recession.
With God’s help, we as individual Christians can start the climb out of spiritual recession, but that climb will be even more successful if we will work together in our congregations. In order to have the revival we need, let me suggest some things that might help:
We must remember the past
Like the church in Ephesus, about which Jesus had some good things to say, we need to “remember from where we have fallen” (Rev. 2:1-5). Those who have been involved in the start of a new congregation can probably remember what an exciting time that was. Over time, we may have lost that excitement. We must not allow ourselves to be satisfied with mediocrity. Are we willing to put forth the effort and make the time to remember and “do the first works” ?
We must forget the past
This may seem to be a contradiction to my previous point, but bear with me. There are some things we should forget. We cannot rely on past performance or successes. Too often we are inclined to justify relaxing our present efforts because of our past work for the Lord. No matter how successful we have been in the past, we need to ask ourselves, “What have we done for Christ lately?” Consider the apostle Paul’s attitude (Phil. 1:13). Nor can we allow past losses or failures to hamper our future work. We need to forget such things and move on.
We must strengthen ourselves
Not only that, but we must help in strengthening others (Heb. 12:12-13). We cannot be satisfied with remaining stagnant. We are commissioned to “abound in the Lord” (I Cor. 15:58), and to work together to build up the body of Christ (Eph. 4:16).
However, we must avoid a number of failures which could prevent the recovery we so desperately need:
Failure to recognize the problem
If we deny we have a problem, or that the problem is ours, we will not be motivated to do something about it, and will end up just “keeping house for the Lord.”
Failure to pray for recovery
If we want relief from our spiritual recession, we must recognize that we can’t do it by ourselves. God won’t revive us without our effort, but He has promised to provide the wisdom we need (Jas. 1:5).
Failure to expect revival
If we pray to God for help, we must have the faith that He will answer. His word tells us that the effective and fervent prayers of the righteous “avail much” (Jas. 5:16), but He holds out no helping hand to the double-minded (Jas. 1:6-8).
Our political leaders tell us that change is coming to America. Whether these changes will bring an end to our nation’s economic woes, or worsen them, is yet to be seen. No matter what happens in America, it’s imperative that positive change must come in the congregations of God’s people.
- Recession.doc (31.74 kB)
