I want to thank Pastor Chad Estep and the Valley Baptist Church for doing an amazing job hosting Family Fellowship Week last month. It was a great blessing to see so many of you in Edinburg. Brother O’Malley and the staff did a wonderful job preparing for the week, and so many components came together for a seamless week of fellowship.
So many things have changed over the years, and we are continually making adjustments to deal with those changes. Nothing is so staggeringly different than the way we communicate. I can remember a time when if a problem developed, it was a long process. A missionary would write, and it would often take weeks to get an answer as the letters would crawl slowly around the world. However, that is the case no longer. Instantaneously we can communicate with the other side of the globe. It leaves no time for us to reflect on our response to a particular situation. Since we are not required to take time for thought, perhaps it would be advisable to take that time on our own. Restraint is not always easy. Our emotions compel us to reply with everything that is on our mind. In those times might I suggest that you write the email and then just let it rest in your computer for a couple of days before sending it to where it can never be recovered and changed.
Consider this with me also: posts on social media. Sometimes it is what we say, and other times it is how we say it. I oftentimes read things on Facebook from missionaries that we are associated with that cause me to cringe. Statements that come across so arrogant it is as though the writer believes that he is the only one that has ever had that thought and therefore has the only correct answer. If we knew the truth, we would probably be amazed at how little others care about our dogmatism. You can be correct and still be wrong! You can be wrong in your disposition even when your position is right. But there are those also that word a statement in such a way as to gender strife. This should not be.
And then there are those pictures! Please use caution when you are posting photos online. We are all aware that there are differences in convictions. Yes, we do indeed have liberty in Christ, but we must not use our liberty to offend a brother in Christ. Look carefully at those pictures before posting them. Look at modesty. Look at the surroundings. Then ask yourself how important is it that this is published for public consumption.
I trust that our Lord will give you a wonderful month in your ministry and family.
In His Service,
Danny A. Whetstone
If this article has been an encouragement to you, you can email Bro. Whetstone here to let him know.