You may say, “I have never thought or will never think of being a suicide statistic.” Yet, Dr. David Jeremiah, the pastor of Shadow Mountain Church in California, has noted that many of God’s people have “Giants” in their lives.

In the Old Testament giants were present as the Israelites prepared to enter the promised land. They were actual people that threatened the lives of God’s people.

Later, David faced Goliath (1 Samuel 17:1-51)

Today, many of God’s children face several ‘Giants” in their lives that intimidate and do not allow them to have a joyful life in the Lord.

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Let us now take a look at some of these “Giants” that Dr. Jeremiah referenced, they may be one, two or ALL of the following.

* After commenting on Dr. Jeremiah’s “Giants” we shall claim scripture pertaining to each one.

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These 12 “Giants” invade our lives and seek to destroy the work of God in us.

1. Fear
2. Guilt
3. Doubt
4. Discouragement
5. Temptation
6. Procrastination
7. Loneliness
8. Anger
9. Failure
10. Worry
11. Resentment
12. Jealousy

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FEAR:

• Fear disregards God’s plan for us; after all His desire for us is that we walk not in fear, but in the power of His love.

• In a way when we live in fear we let it distort Gods purpose for our Life. Fear causes one to not believe God’s promises and could cause one to disobey God’s principles.

How can you overcome fear?  Claim scripture from God’s Word as fear is being disobedient to God.

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DISCOURAGEMENT:

• Discouragement is bound to hit us at one or two points in our life.  However, to dwell upon discouragement can cause problems.

• The best way to combat discouragement is to recognize what makes you vulnerable to it.  Then you can keep it at a distance.

• Basically, according to Christian psychologist, Larry Crabb, there are four factors that cause discouragement to be a giant in our life:  Note:  two of these are giants by themselves.

1. 1. Fatigue
   2. Frustration
   3. Failure
   4. Fear

How do you respond to discouragement?  Do as Nehemiah did, cry out to God, continue the work that He has given you to do and concentrate on the big picture.  Claim the encouragement of God’s promises that He is with you.

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FATIGUE:

• Fatigue is a factor that makes us vulnerable to discouragement.  Sometimes we push ourselves too hard.  Though It is necessary to work hard,  it is also necessary to rest and recuperate.

When we are tired, we have trouble accomplishing our goals.  Therefore, we become discouraged.

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FRUSTRATION:

Frustration is a factor that faces us at some time in our lives.

• Nehemiah’s workers in (Nehemiah 4:10)  faced both fatigue and frustration.  They had worked 25 to 30 days without a break and as a result they were tired and their strength was failing.

• In order to finish the wall they were faced with the frustration of moving the prior stones that the Babylonians had left when they tore down the old walls.  However, they persevered  and completed the task at hand.

• If you live your life without purpose or you can not accomplish the task that you have set out to complete, you will become frustrated

You can live life three ways; you can live out, wear out, or burn out.

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FAILURE:

Failure is a factor that affects people in various ways.  Failure is not always the issue, it is how you respond to that particular failure.

I truly believed in my playing and coaching sports, that a setback was a setup for a comeback.

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LONELINESS:

Loneliness is a “giant” that manifest itself in different stages in life.

One thing that is encouraging despite the fact your life may be devoid of human relationships is that God is always with you.

Many of us have passed through one or more of these stages in our lifetime.  It is not a sin to be lonely, but it can be a sin if you indulge in it and allow it to turn to self pity.

Whether you are a lonely single, a lonely spouse, a lonely survivor or a lonely senior citizen, you can be a servant for our Lord with a purpose.

Many lonely servants go to the mission field either as a short-term or long term missionary.

Dr. David Jeremiah has suggested four ways to accept loneliness and how we can escape from loneliness engulfing us by:

• Acknowledging not denying we are alone
• Accepting God’s provision for our loneliness
• Allowing God’s Word to fill our heart and mind
• To activate a network of Christian friends.

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WORRY:

• Worry is future focused.  Worry can not change the future nor can it control the future.

In Matthew 6:25-34 Jesus said, “Don’t worry” three times.  These are our marching orders for defeating the “giants” of worry.

Jesus was not saying we should not plan or be concerned about things in life that concern us spiritually or morally. He meant do not worry about things over which you have no control that paralyze you and those who depend upon you.

Jesus said to focus on only one thing in life, the Kingdom of God and the values which it stands for. To win over worry, we need to set our priorities.

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GUILT:

David had two “giants’ in his life.  Early in his life he faced Goliath and later, as King David, he had to deal with the “giant” of guilt.  Defeating the guilt in his sin was far more difficult than dealing with Goliath.

Two Psalms – Psalms 32 and 52 give us the story of how David lived with his sin (Psalm 32) and confessed his sin (Psalm 51).

• In Psalm 32 David agonized over his sin while in Psalm 51 he admitted his sin.

• In Psalm 32 David could not even talk to the Lord about his sin nor could he talk to anyone else about it.

Guilt had shut David down into a world of sorrow and silence.  He stayed in that world until God sent Nathan the prophet to confront him.  Then David realized it was time to admit his guilt.

The admission of Psalm 51 is something that all of use need to use as we open our facebook to God.

It is not just for David in his time and situation but also for Lou Redd to admit to my Lord my sin, and accept responsibility for it.

This will allow me to restore the joy and fellowship with my Lord and refocus upon what He has called me to do.

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The last one we shall deal with in this time frame is temptation (we shall cover the other six next time).

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TEMPTATION:

The word temptation is exposure to the possibility of doing the wrong thing.  Acting upon that exposure is where sin comes into our life.

There is a good passage that speaks of temptation.  1 Corinthians 10:12-14 speaks of standing firm and the fact that God will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.

If we resist the Devil, he will leave us.

We need to flee from temptation.  Whatever it is that blocks you from a right fellowship with God, you need to flee from that temptation.

• We all need to resolve to get off the low road of non-commitment and live on God’s high road.
• The high road is not free of temptation, but it provides a route of escape.

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I leave you with scripture that may help you to defeat those “giants” that we dealt with in this part 1 of giants.

Fear:  Deuteronomy 31:6

Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them, for the Lord your God, he is the one that goes with you.  He will not leave you nor forsake you.

Fear:  Psalm 27:1

The Lord is my light and my salvation, who shall I fear?  The Lord is the strength of my life, of who shall I be afraid?

Discouragement:  2 Corinthians 4:16

Therefore we do not lose heart.  Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.

Discouragement:  Psalm 27:14

Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, wait I say on the Lord.

Loneliness:  Isaiah 43:2

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. Though you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.

Loneliness:  Matthew 28: 20

Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Worry:  Psalm 55:22

Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.

Worry:  Philippians 4:6-7

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Guilt:  Psalm 103:12

As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us

Guilt:  Isaiah 43: 25

I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions or my own sake; and I will not remember your sins.

Temptation:  Romans 13:14

Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

Temptation:  Hebrews 2:18

For in that He himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.

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I wish to thank you for the many kind remarks that you have provided in regard to the blog.

I ask that you to encourage your family, friends and church members to read the material.  If church members and friends would also urge others to read the information, perhaps they would be encouraged as well.

Until the next time, may you have peaceful journeys.

Lou

By 2010, 40% of the average North American Congregation will be over 50.

Therefore, not only does the church have to plan ministry for older adults (65-74), maturing adults (75+), but also for middle adults (50-64) for their numbers are growing.

As a result, the church must develop ministry ideas and ministry opportunities for three church groups.

We also need to strengthen inter generational relationships among children, youth, busters, boomers and builders.

Builders must realize that significant living is necessary in the second half of life.  God is giving us more years and energy to serve while the church needs to develop communication tools to reach each targeted audience.

How do we get started correctly in Older Adult ministry?

Here are some principles that apply to all 50+ groups.

1. Find, select, train leadership.
2. Begin an Older Adult, not Senior Adult, Ministry.
3. Develop a purpose statement.
4. Build a Senior conscience.
5. Get the facts involving your target group such as;

• Number of people over 50
• Homebound
• Number of males and females
• Needs and interests

Now we are going to enter a new paradigm for ministry.

The “Middle Adult” group do not perceive themselves as seniors and anything that remotely resembles an activity will repel them.

One indication is that they drive; they do not take the bus.  A new approach is needed.

In addition, most present senior groups are saturated due to the fact that after a few years together a group stays to itself and inadvertently keeps others out.

They only replace people not add people for the most part.  A new approach is needed.

Briefly, let us look at some characteristics of “Middle Adults”.

1. Middle Adults are at their peak of influence and possess great energy.  Sometimes, though they are leaders in communities, they are overlooked in church.
2. Their children are growing up and leaving home (empty nest).
3. They are looking toward retirement.
4. They are spending increasing energy in leisure time activities.
5. They are adjusting to aging parents.

During the next 18 years, someone in the U.S. will turn 50 every eight seconds.

That is because from 1946-1964, 76 million middle adults were born.  Yes, the middle adults are exploding on the scene.

The present senior group will not hold the key for outreach to the boomer.

In my estimation, there are some key connecting points that those of us who are up there (age 75) can discover that will help us with this population.

1. Connect with boomers in the church and community by participating in their activities periodically.
2. Discover boomer characteristics.
3. Give attention to expressed needs, interests, and concerns.
4. Reach non-churched boomers by building friendship bridges.
5. Enlist boomers to help you.
6. Begin to educate all generations about aging issues without using the word “senior”.
7. Provide internet resources for issue solving.

The boomers that I have interviewed in several churches have several values that may set them apart from other groups.

The four main values that surface in most congregations among boomers are:

• Boomers value family driven ministry (children involved).
• Boomers value freedom (retired but free to travel).
• Boomer value Biblical preaching (raised on absolutes).
• Boomers value respect when church decisions are made.

Much of the boomers group are part of the sandwich generation.

Now we direct our attention to the “Older” or as we are referred to, the “Elder” generation.

Life is a marathon not a sprint, and in our journey we have had experiences that required faith and endurance.

We have overcome depression, global war, technological change, and social upheaval.  Yet, we are still here and we still have something to contribute.

Celebrating with “Older” adults can be a joy providing the church utilizes their experience and skills.

Consider some activities and some ministries for “Older” adults.  Here are some things that can provide joy and learning in the lives of “Older” adults.

1. Older Adult revival – can be during the day if it involves a large number of people.
2. Older Adult Bible conference.
3. Older Adult VBS.
4. Older Adult retreat.
5. Older Adult monthly theme luncheons.
6. Older Adult historical site trips.
7. Older Adult week or month.

The next Older adult ministries are “service”.  Which would bring experience and energy for significant living in the lives of many older adults.

Many ministries are local ministries in the church and community.  This would be older adults ministering to other older adults.

• Visiting other older adults that are homebound or in assisted living facilities.
• Lunch partner with a homebound person weekly.
• Substitute caregiver that relieves a caregiver an hour or two each week.
• School helpers in or outside the classroom.
• Audiotape of Sunday’s worship service; deliver and listen.
• VBS in a nursing home.

Our next blog will focus on “Who do we get to do ministry?” Until then, journey well.

Lou