Lord's of the Philistines and how to defeat them.

1 Samuel 6:16-18

English Standard Version (ESV)

¹⁶ And when the five lords of the Philistines saw it, they returned that day to Ekron.
¹⁷ These are the golden tumors that the Philistines returned as a guilt offering to the Lord: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gath, one for Ekron, ¹⁸ and the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both fortified cities and unwalled villages. The great stone beside which they set down the ark of the Lord is a witness to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh.

Cutting through all of the yip-yap, the Lords of the Philistines (well, the cities they ruled anyway) represent 5 specifically different obstacles or hindrances in our lives that must be overcomes in order to walk in sustained spiritual strength and vigor.

Ashdod 
Gaza
Ashkelon
Gath
Ekron

King David defeated these Lords at the beginning of his reign (bringing the flesh into submission) and Jesus overcame them all on our behalf.  It is these 5 cities/sinful hangups that we will be examining in the next 5 posts.  I'm also producing an original piece of art to illustrate each lesson, so don't stay away.

Bang For Your Buck

Spinning wheels; I used to do this a lot and sometimes I find myself headed in that direction again.  Here is what happens when you spin your wheels:

- Lots of Smoke
- Draws a Crowd
- Everybody Starts Coughing
- Smell of Burnt Rubber
- Have to go Buy New Tires
- Rinse, Lather, Repeat

For some odd reason, when we apply this process to ministry, it seems to make sense to us.  It is the crowd part we get dazzled by and we forget that we are not really doing anything for them that they truly need and then we run out of gas and have to go get it all set up again just to draw a new crowd (because the previous crowd saw something shiny in the other corner of the parking lot).

When ministering to people, it is important to keep the main goal in mind at all times.  People need hope more than they need excitement.  People need to know Jesus and His salvation more than they need something that makes them go, "Wow!"  People need life more than they need a show.  There is truth to the double nickel speed being the most economic. 

Don't misread me, I like fast.  But at the expense of actually getting to the destination, I choose to get more distance for my buck than I do bang.  Ministry is meant to be more like a purpose filled road trip than it is whatever the dude in the picture is doing.  We may only have a hatchback that has no AC, but if it will get us where we are going, that is where the investment should be made.

I choose to invest in people who are interested in investing in people.  I despise drama and I care very little for the bells and whistles of high octane ministry.  It is really all about priorities; dress it up if you like, but make sure it is the cross.  I am for excellence in ministry, but please let us remember that the most excellent thing is love.