Don’t Miss the Greatness
By Pastor Chuck Swindoll
Pastors, Let God Grow Big in Your Life
“People who are ministered to deeply by their pastor are ministered to because their hearts are touched. And they are softened because they are ministered to by someone whose heart is soft. And they are moved to tears at times because there are occasions when you are moved to tears. And they are brought to confession of sins as they hear you acknowledge your own failures and trials. And their God grows in the dimensions your God grows and a pastor that has a great God cultivates people who worship and adore a great God.”
Great is the Lord and Greatly to Be Praised
“In whatever category you choose, in whatever area of your life, you may have a need. He is great there as well. He is the One to whom we pray. He is the One to whom we give praise for His “inspiring deeds and wonderful miracles and glorious splendor.” Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised. Don’t miss that. Don’t let that get by you. Don’t graduate from this place without a great God to preach, to teach, to use as a basis of your counseling ministry . . . to sing, to represent.”
Adore God
“You must worship Him and adore Him, and at times, I’ll just say it, fall down before Him and just acknowledge your need for Him. And just cry out to Him as He becomes increasingly more significant to you as your mind is stretched in your studies.”
Don’t Let Your Pride and Ego Grow
“And as you grow and your head enlarges and your pride increases and your ego becomes a little out of control at times because you are learning words in another language and you were learning how to read in another language and you are touching the original text of the Scriptures and you are finding the thrill of that exegesis that draws its blessings from time in the original text, which I love and I’m still engaged in. Every week of my life I’m in the original text. I learned how to do that here. And I didn’t learn it to lay it aside. But it can easily make you proud. And rather than increasing your fear of the Almighty, it can simply pique your curiosity as you learn names of God that are not in English and as you learn the truths of God that are in Hebrew and Aramaic and in Greek.”
Don’t Miss His Greatness!
“What I don’t want you to miss, and this is what I want to address today, is the greatness of God . . . the greatness of God! He’s not just good, He is great, great in every way. And it is easy for you to miss that and to fulfill your assignments all the while experiencing a reduction in the greatness of God in your life.”
Additional Resources
First, sign up for our Chuck’s Insights on Ministry email where we bring you his best thoughts on preaching, leadership, and ministry each week. By signing up, you’ll instantly receive a one-page checklist with 20 preaching insights from Chuck. See this page’s sidebar.
Second, check out our new Preach The Word articles and video series on YouTube where we’re teaching Chuck’s best insights on this important calling.
Third, listen to Chuck’s messages to those in ministry through our Seminary Chapels page. For decades, he offered students at Dallas Theological Seminary his best thoughts on church leadership and ministry. Now, we have put them at your finger tips. Also, you can find them through this YouTube playlist we created for you.
Fourth, if you don’t own a copy of Chuck’s book on preaching, Saying It Well, we highly recommend you add it to your library. It’s his preaching memoir that is also like a practical preaching manual. You won’t be able to put it down.
About the author
Pastor Chuck Swindoll
Pastor Charles R. Swindoll has devoted his life to the accurate, practical teaching and application of God’s Word. He is the founding pastor of Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco, Texas, but Chuck’s listening audience extends far beyond a local church body. As a leading program in Christian broadcasting since 1979, Insight for Living airs around the world. Chuck’s leadership as president and now chancellor emeritus at Dallas Theological Seminary has helped prepare and equip a new generation of men and women for ministry.