Constant.
Enduring.
Lasting.
Permanent.
These three men inspire me. They are fixtures of faith here in Zrenjanin. The father of the church we are serving in stands in the middle. He started the church 35 years ago. He has sown into the lives of countless Serbs the Truth of the Kingdom of God.
To the left is the man he and God raised up to take over when he felt called out to a more remote village. Jovica Popov celebrates 10 years of servant leadership next year. If the community he serves is any reflection of the leader (which I believe it is) he is doing many things right. Among other things, blessing a group of seven Americans.
Finally, the man on the right is a young pastor who is working with the elder pastor to start a church further outside the city. We visited today and learned about his big vision for his currently 15-seat church. “You must take control of your mind for Christ and not envy what you see others have but thank God for what He has given you.” Due to the size of the infant congregation he works his in-laws fields during the week and drives the hour to the church on Friday night and Sunday morning to preach.
Repeatedly on the Race I wrestle with an inner struggle with how to “value” a ministry. If numbers and metrics are my baseline I could be fooled into thinking these men labor in vain. If transformation is my guide and how well their disciples reflect that which they are being taught I’d say some mega churches could afford to take notes from these men and these congregations.
Thankfully for us all I am not the final judge of their success. Time will tell what type of permanent, lasting and enduring treasure they have secured in Heaven.
