If You Were
An Elder,
What Would You Do...
If you taught and urged others to teach about the importance of faithfulness, yet several on the church roll continually absented themselves from worship?
If you taught and asked others to teach about sacrifice and yet some of the members showed almost no spirit of sacrifice of their time, their money, or themselves?
If you taught and encouraged others to teach about righteousness and moral purity, and yet some of the members of the church were living immoral and ungodly lives?
If you were trying to lead the church in Christ's way, and yet some would refuse to follow and to cooperate?
If you were burdened with the responsibility of leadership, and yet you were continually subjected to second-guessing and criticism by those who do not understand all of the aspects of the problems that you had to face?
Think carefully for a moment, really, what would you do?
Elders are human. Many of them bear burdens not of their own making. Their long hours of meetings and labor have little or no earthly reward. They love the church and want to help it, and they know that some day they must give an account for the souls that are in their keeping.
It is not an easy job. Let us remember our elders in our prayers and cooperate with them as they lead us in the right way.
--Owen Cosgrove
From Our Archives, 1983